Not a PS Staffer 9.3
26 October 2013 at 11:06 am
Mark Mitchell, MP for North Shore, is a former NZ Policeman who..
“launched an international business career which included the start-up of my own company specialising in hostage rescue, supply chain security and risk management. Working closely with the World Economic Forum, I helped to establish Logistic Emergency Response Teams…. ”
see http://www.markmitchell.co.nz/mark-mitchell-profile.html
Mitchell’s father-in-law Frank Gill was a National Party North Shore MP as well as being a minister and ambasador to Washington.
Mitchell is a well integrated into the National Party real power structures. Mitchell is also well integrated into the Special Services network, the Police and the Intelligence Services.
Mark Mitchell knew about the Len Brown affair because there was a professional project to displace Len that went beyond the Palino/Slater/Wewege amateurs.
Mark Mitchell’s father in law was a leery leech! Followed me around the Debating Chamber gallery many years ago. I was not impressed. Insisted on being called Air Commodore Gill. Struck me as lacking in any intellectual skills. Sounds like Mark Mitchell would have been a fine fit with his father-in-law.
Mitchell won’t sue Hager. This is just pre-relection deflection. There is nothing stopping him telling his lawyers to get cracking on it right now if he was serious. He is not serious, and like with Collins, this case will not see court.
There will, I suspect, be other cases that do see court. But not this one.
As a staunch supporter of the Left, I am becoming increasingly concerned about the dangerous gaps in policy.
Last night I didn’t sleep a wink. Not one party I could call as being from the political Left (Parties that truly care what happens to people) had any mention of one of the most important details of Health and economic development policy on their websites. Over on the Right party sites, they are neck deep in satirical logical fallacies, it’s easy to tell what they really mean, but on the Left, nothing. How would a left coalition government help those in need of Cognitive Dissonance? It’s not 1968 anymore, telling people you’ll do your best if nothing comes up and to put their trust in Good Faith just doesn’t cut it.
You know what happened the other day? I went to find my car and there was this awful stink. It was so bad I thought I’d run over a hedgehog on the way into work. You know what it was? One of those Street Lifestylers wedged between my front bumper and the pipes running along the wall of the building. It was trying to keep warm no doubt. Well someone paid for that heat and he stole it. Why don’t they just hang out in cafes like everyone else if he’s that bad off. God, I hate people who don’t do what’s right. Had to get the parking attendant to roll it away. Reality is becoming so much more difficult to ignore under successive governments and ignoring my growing unease just isn’t on. The next Left government really needs to act.
Awful interview by Espiner on RNZ.
Proof the media will not discuss policies and usual wants to talk polls etc….
Now we’ve read Dirty Politics, we know the agenda.
I just don’t know if personal stuff will have impact, or if it devalues the whole project. Hager’s been very careful to stick to the issues which show how the right has been manipulating the media and attacking its opponents, and we’ve already seen blowback like “well aren’t you doing exactly the same thing using hacked emails.”
If it gets personal it’s much, much easier for the right to brush it off by saying “see, the left are just as bad, this is politics as normal.”
given the nats current penchant for using tobacco companies to train some of its young candidates, whaledump on carrick gragam and slater might be edifying for some
Unbelievable! This no doubt was his attempt at “balance” after the roasting he gave the PM a week or so ago. But shouting 25% six times in a minute, and saying things like “I put it to you that nobody like you” is not the stuff of tough interviews – it is just a shallow and silly attack.
It’s a gotcha question. If Cunliffe answered “Sure, lots of people like me” he’d sound full of himself, if he said “Not enough like me” he’d sound hopeless. It’s like asking when someone stopped beating their wife.
Without a central leaker, Hager would have no book. He salutes their bravery. “We mustn’t fall for the idea that whistleblowers are doing something wrong. They are the natural reaction to undemocratic government.”
QFT
And that, to, is something that the National Party and their sycophants don’t want people to consider. It’s why they parrot the line that things were stolen which is just more of the manipulation that Dirty Politics shows so well.
Author of the Guardian article is Antony Loewenstein – one of the Australian Jewish community’s leading and most trenchant critics of Israel. Wrote My Israel Question (an excellent analysis of, amongst other things, the Zionist/”Pro”-Israeli excesses of sections of the Aussie Jewish community – particularly its lobby-groups) and co-founded Independent Australian Jewish Voices. He’s paid a substantial personal price over the years for his courage and integrity.
Awww .. thx, the Stuff link has excellent info about Whaledump. So Rawshark it is then, and our hacker does seem to be a man. Interesting comment that his motive, when fully understood, will point directly at him, and only him.
It’s a must read for many here.
But OUCH ! comment from someone under the Guardian article ..
‘NZ is the new Uruguay – a once prosperous nation now increasingly a relatively impoverished but scenic backwater’ .
Yes Awww Thanks for the Guardian link. The writer says that the dirty tricks happen all round the world and this expose is very timely. Niky has reached the World. And John Key has plummeted to the bowels of the World.
Mother of dead west coaster Slater defamed said it was most likely one of his friends was most likely the hacker!
And she was going to sue Camoron Slater!
All I’m aware of is the ‘feral’ comment about the dead man which has been reported in the press. I haven’t looked at Slater’s original remarks as I’d rather sort through used lavatory paper looking for re-usable sheets.
I’d think it unlikely, though. Establishing defamation is a pretty high bar. Frankly I doubt even Slater’s comment about Judd Hall as ‘feral’ would be legally defamatory in the way that, say, calling him a fraudster or paedophile would be.
The woman herself, in the morning report interview said as much about the phrase “feral” and said that a lot of people on the coast were quite happy with such a description. I’m not sure whether she specifically included herself in the group but she didn’t seem to find it offensive.
Surprised me. I would have found it so.
There was some speculation amongst a few of us last week about the identity of the hacker and thought it may be a classmate, friend or partner of Judd Hall’s – remember Nicky Hager said the motivation for the hacking wasn’t political.
Jo(e?) Hall, Judd’s Mum , said she hoped that Key would apologise for his connection with Slater when he visited the West Coast today. I think she might be mistaken, assuming that Key has some scruples.
Here’s the thing West Coast Tasman voters. In 2011 you gave your party vote to National, with National receiving the highest amount of party votes. On 20th September turn your backs on this party that has done nothing for you and whose leader stood by the one who mocked the death of one of your sons.
Make “zero party votes for National” your goal in 2014.
Lest we forget, what this present NatACT government has done to us!!!
While much attention has recently been given to the nasty “black ops” activities by a blogger by the name of Cameron Slater (aka “Whaleoil”) and certain senior staff in the Prime Minister’s Office, same as by Judith Collins and a few others, we must not forget what else happened over recent years, and for what Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has been responsible for. Here is a selection of news and other sources re her nasty “welfare reforms” and her own hypocrisy:
“Social Development Minister Paula Bennett admits that part of her welfare reforms breach the Bill of Rights Act but says it would not bother most people.” “And Attorney-General Chris Finlayson denies he deliberately withheld his report advising that part of the Government’s welfare plans breach the Bill of Rights Act. He puts the delay in its presentation to Parliament as an “administrative error”.”
“In July 2009, Bennett released the benefit details of two beneficiaries, Natasha Fuller and Jennifer Johnston, who had criticised the Government’s policy of getting rid of the Training Initiative Allowance (TIA). She said she believed she had “implied consent” for the release of the information.” “There has also been considerable criticism of Bennett for abolishing the TIA. Both Fuller and Labour MP Charles Chauvel said that they would make complaints to the privacy commissioner and Schroff, respectively.”
“The Privacy Commission investigated Bennett’s actions after receiving a complaint. In late 2010, Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff closed her investigation into the privacy complaint and referred the matter to the Director of Human Rights Proceedings for the Human Rights Commission, Robert Hesketh. On 15 August 2012, Hesketh announced the resolution of the complaint under the Privacy Act against Bennett, saying, “On the basis of the Minister’s letter to me, I have agreed to close my file. The matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties.”[30] In her letter to Hesketh, Bennett wrote: “I have on previous occasions expressed to you through my counsel and to Ms Fuller, when I met with her in person, my regret at the personal cost that this incident has caused Ms Fuller. The purpose of this letter is to formally convey that.”
“As you know, I took the view that it was appropriate for me to respond to some of Ms Fuller’s comments in order to provide what I considered to be information relevant to the public debate that was taking place at the time. I acknowledge that you consider that I was wrong to do so and that this resulted in a breach of Ms Fuller’s privacy.” “As you also know, I do not accept that view.”
Chooky, I am most likely to give the Greens my party vote, although I cannot agree with some of their policies. They do though seem to offer the best deal to those dependent on WINZ, and actually want to bring in a kind of universal basic income, by replacing the present Social Security Act with new law. That basic income would be topped up, and it seems they are prepared to ensure people get enough to live from, whether they care for children, are disabled, studying or whatever else.
Like with all parties, they list much aspirational stuff, but I trust them more than Labour, certainly when it comes to social security. Question will be how much they can push for when negotiating with Labour to form a government, but I have reservations re Internet Mana, as they will most likely not be such an important player, and may not even be needed for a government. Also I have some concerns about Dotcom’s involvement, and how many in the public perceive them.
Labour have got some interesting social policy too now, but they really do much more for those able to work, and in some ways they seem only moderately caring for the unemployed sick and disabled. Work is their mantra for many social ills, a bit like the National Party, just not as unfair and harsh.
But take a look at all left of centre parties’ policies, I just stated my thoughts.
@xtasy…thanks!….that is good to hear about the Greens because i was going to Party vote for them anyway …you just confirm my intended vote ..I have a brother with a handicap and who is on a disability benefit….so i will make sure that he knows your arguments and research too… Generally he votes Labour…but he may like to consider the Greens this time.
Maybe you could turn this into a Post?….so a lot more people get to see your research, arguments and hear your perspective on this very important party policy issue.
I am not going to turn stuff into a post, although this “comment” above is the size of one. Over the coming days and weeks I will present a bit more of stuff that I have saved, that I can find by Google search, and that will remind people of what the Nats under Key and Bennett have done to harm and harass so many.
I will also endeavour to present a bit more on Dr Bratt and so forth. A few good comments on Open Mike will be read by many, I am sure.
well i think many beneficiaries and those who support them do need some guidance on which parties have the BEST policies for them and why….or at least a personal perspective from the coal face to spark off their thinking on which party to vote for
….you could always maybe circulate it in a post on the Daily Blog as well?
Just placed a reserve on Dirty Politics at the library. I am number 63 in the queue and there are 10 copies available for loan….so much for the public not being interested.
you can maybe ask on here for a loan copy from someone .. I can’t help as I have the kindle version on my computer. but asking is worth a try. (And to maintain mutual anonymity, make a new gmail account and post it for someone to contact you. I did it when book first came out, and had it all arranged .. but then ebook was available.)
#320 is a long way down and the election is close !
Good idea yeshe. We could have a Standardista Dirty Politics library. I’m in Wellington and more than happy to lend my copy. This book is essential reading for all NZer’s of any political colour. (principled National voters would be disgusted at the depths their party has sunk to)
I can’t afford to buy books these days (my days collecting of books came to an abrupt end when financial circumstances changed!) but used the grocery money to get my copy. Well worth having baked beans on toast two meals in a row as a consequence!
maybe not the same person, but same intent !! And more ….
I see the Pike River families are planning a silent protest at Key this afternoon with Jo Hall ( Judd’s mother) hopeful of an apology from Key .. well, at least she’s going to make it plain it is what she expects.
(oops .. just saw your previous post on same subject, sorry)
What I did last week — I created a new gmail account, with a family name .. then I posted that email addy on here for the poster to contact me, which he did. I don’t know if his name was real or not ! Good luck …
I’d suggest, if it were ok with Lynn, that if a person requested to borrow a book, that Lynn could forward the “issuer’s” email address to the “borrower”. This would perhaps mean there would a be a list on this site with commenters/issuers and their areas, that borrowers could select from. Borrower x see’s that issuer y in Tauranga has a copy of The Book they can lend. They get in touch via email and arrange collection or postage.
There needs to be an element of trust in doing this, but I feel more comfortable with option than yeshe’s one below. (Could you get spammed by crazies?)
Depends on whether Lynn and or authors have the time to muck around supplying emails.
or you could just strip out the DRM form a purchased copy from amazon and share that, takes less than 3 minutes to do. After all, information should be free and copyright is an outdated concept enforced by the fascist lackeys of corporates. If it wasn’t against the law (and I respect the property rights of the Standard), I’d a post a link to it here. Wouldn’t surprise me however if its not already on Mega.
“or you could just strip out the DRM form a purchased copy from amazon and share that, takes less than 3 minutes to do.”
How? I had a look online simply so I could open the book in something other than kindle which doesn’t support page numbering (doh!). The couple of online and download apps I tried couldn’t rip the book.
I have said I would never again post on TS, but in this case, I’m willing to make an exception. I will lend my copy. Contact me at “borrowdp [at] hmamail.com”
How long does your library loan books for? I would assume that it is a week so only 3 more people will get each book before the election.
I imagine the number on the list will go to zero on 21 September.
Didn’t hear it but heard my husband abusing the radio when he heard it. Didn’t blame him when he told me about guyons incisive, in depth interview of Cumliffe. I think DC should just send ‘The Office’ next time. Trying to get a decent interview from guyon is just a waste of time for David. Who says to ANYONE “I put it to you that nobody likes you” Well guyon, you are universally disliked , you could be better but you choose daily to show yourself up as a biased, boring lazy interviewer. And your voice is barely distinguishable from Susie’s
Nothing terribly surprises me anymore, but I have to admit that the NZ Herald is challenging that.
Today in the Herald there’s two puff pieces on National and none on Labour. Worse we get this in one of the puff pieces on National;
“National has goodies in reserve Labour is reaching the bottom of the pork barrel with its remaining election campaign spending promises curbed by Treasury’s forecasts last week of lower tax take.”
That’s the bit that everybody sees on the website.
The other puff piece, and the bit that everybody sees is;
“Housing plan: Winners and losers
National’s proposed home loan subsidies could help many young people into their first homes – although experts warn that the extra money will also push up house price”
Labour’s budget is presented as an ‘alternative’ budget.
There’s a story in the Money section titled;
“How to “Labour-proof” your portfolio”.
I cannot see how it is possible to maintain a democracy under these conditions.
“I cannot see how it is possible to maintain a democracy under these conditions.”
Only the illusion of democracy remains, soon as you understand that it makes sense.
Rawdie’s bloody thick as well. Just not up to it. Watch the uneasy pause, the shamble, the momentary ‘just sucked a lemon’ mouth when he gets a challenging response to whatever facile question/assertion he’s put/made.
Followed by eyes averted, semi-smile recovery. “W-e-e-l-l-l-l……nevertheless……”
Anyone catch that clip on telly this weekend where Slater said he would be involved in politics long after Key had left the scene?
And in a moment of supreme zen weirdness he said he had “met and dealt with” every PM from Muldoon onward?
How old is he? 40? If so, he reckons he was dealing with Muldoon when he was 10, and with Lange when he was 11. And he goes on telly and squints into the camera and says this as if it’s real.
Jesus, this is the fucking spoon Key got to help him run the country.
Remember his father was the president of the National party for years so dinner party’s bbq’s etc no doubt Camoron would have met and been influenced by National Party insiders he is a credit to all of them!
Prior to becoming the Nat Party president, he was the chairman of the all important Auckland National Division going back to the 1970s. Wee Cameron would have been the recipient of a lot of head patting from National Party senior figures as he grew up. Perhaps his head sustained a bit of damage in the process.
Doesn’t take Guyon long to revert to type, viz. snooty little clipped-tones toff, barely suppressing the alter ego of ‘Headmaster GodKey’ sans smirk lurking within. Michelle-Boag-on-steroids Ferguson equally unfit for RNZ Morning Report.
How unartful are these media lads and lassies when the only route to the guts of matters is their anger at being personally affronted ? As for example the “Is it OK ?” episode Guyon with TheGodKey last week.
An outstanding blog by Giovanni Tiso this morning.
I would have left a message congratulating him, but couldn’t figure out the new comments configuration on his site. So I’ll say it here: Bravo!
Just shows how inured we are to these kinds of arguments.
My particular bugbear is the false equivalence arguments where some nobody getting kicked unconscious in a gutter equals one Person Who Matters feeling insulted by a criticism about their behaviour. And we see these kinds of false equivalences and unequal treatment according to status all the time in the media because the bias it reflects is so ingrained – in a large part by the media itself in an obscene vicious circle with public opinion.
A beneficiary is vilified for not being able to make ends meet on a benefit set at a rate which makes doing so impossible, while in the same issue of the paper a Remuera couple who lost money in a collapsed finance company gets a sympathy piece and their “give a little” page which is up to $50,000 of donations is advertised because they might have to sell their house and buy something more affordable.
And who has been deliberately creating and maintaining these circles?
I agree, and this election has shown up the assumptions associated with inequality like no other. A National Party ad that verges on self parody, and could almost double as an ad for a posh private school. The hounding and demeaning of every representative on the left, while the PM, who really is accountable, is allowed to alter the meaning of words, and refuse to answer questions with impunity. Debate seems to have descended to the level of sixth form bitchery with the “aspirational” dominating the common room and the remainder cast as flea-bags. I am all but waiting for some lip-glossed, right leaning, TV presenter to shout, “You can’t say that to me, because I’m a TV presenter and I’m beautiful!”
Dame Anne Salmond: Royal commission of inquiry needed to clean up NZ’s dirty politics.
.
The Dirty Politics saga cuts to the heart of political life in New Zealand. Over the past 10 years there has been an insidious shift in the way that government works, with increasingly autocratic, arrogant ministers taking away the levers of power from citizens and civil servants.
The independence of the civil service has been eroded, with ministers routinely interfering in operational decisions. Last year, the Law Society felt impelled to report to the United Nations that Parliament had been used to pass a succession of acts that strip away rights, freedoms and protections from citizens, in breach of the Bill of Rights. Ministerial accountability has become a farce.
Lets see, John Key didn’t sell any assets as the controlling share is still held by the government whereas Labour sold 100% of the assets (and also a lot more then National ever did)
National strengthened the overseas investment rules (which were woeful under Labour) and yes more land was sold under Labour then has been sold under National
Also hes stated no more asset sales this term, its still legal to join a union and promoting free healthcare to under 13s
Yes hes a RWNJ and wants us to return to feudalism
Do we still own 100% of our power stations? No? Assets sold. And, due to the laws in NZ that prevent the majority shareholder from doing anything to decrease returns to minor shareholders means that we no longer have any control either
Chances are National only did that because knew that they wouldn’t get away with doing what they actually wanted.
Dear DTB and labour are going to sell housing nz land as part of kiwibuild. Funny how it is ok to sell nz state assets when we do it. A great opportunity lost as the land could be better used IMHO for new state houses. Then we have today in the herald 40m2 houses on 119m2 sections at a bargin $339k , is this what affordable housing has become we the voter should be demanding that state land esp within Auckland be used to build state houses, and also help to reduce the govt housing subsidy paid to land lords.
I don’t think it’s OK at all. I’m not impressed one bit by Labour’s housing policy. We need more state houses, and for many reasons. A good building program would provide training, employment, push prices down and have a follow on effect on private rents.
More than a third of voters may change their vote over Dirty Politics. Game changer.
“The shadow of ‘Dirty Politics’ still hangs over the campaign. John Key is not answering questions about the book on the trail anymore. He is trying to draw a line under it in the hope it has not damaged his and National’s position too badly. National’s internal polling is said to show the book’s revelations are not resonating with the public.
However, TVNZ’s Vote Compass survey found the book had affected 36% of the 13,913 voters who took the online poll, who said it may change their vote to varying degrees”
And on another issue National is on the wrong side of:
“A 3News Reid Research poll released last night showed 77% of voters believed there should be stricter controls on foreign ownership and 20% said there should not be stricter controls”
my favourite from the link .. thx BG .. good to be reminded this is all we need …
“The knife-edge nature of the electoral mathematics of MMP mean a loss of 2-3% support from National would be enough to put its re-election in doubt, and it is already going into the election with opinion poll support around 2-3% lower than in the lead-up to the 2011 election, which it won by less than 10,000 votes.”
Key cannot blame it on left wing conspiracy theorists any more!
Cameron Slater and Conman Key have to take Personal Responsibility for their self made mess!
Key can’t even blame dotcom!
Key is now trying to mumble his way round the massive mess of his own creation!
Key sounds like a lying little school boy!
Whoa! Didn’t know this one. There’s no mincing of words there. A bit edgy, I must admit but then again they weren’t” listened to” in 2011 (Listen to us) so the resentment edged up another notch. What does Farrar expect, the boys choir praising Key?
Excellent bass line. Quite uncomfortable with the threatening reference to fucking Key’s daughter though.
It’s a bit shocking Peter but then again a) it’s not going to happen b)I’ve listened to music all my life so am familiar with violent anti authority expressions and c) this view sums up my sentiments perfectly:
“………….. I don’t have to like it. I understand why its happening. When your suppress people and their voice it breaks through and it is not pretty as it would have been if you let them have a say in the first place.”
anker @24 11.16am
My main concern is with Key’s daughter being threatened. She has nothing to do with the running of the country and the threat sounds rather rapey to me. Myself I don’t like or dislike the lyrics (but like the melody) but I wouldn’t play it when people are around at my house, even guests that feel just as angry towards Key as @peace do.
I’ve listened a few times, and I agree Rosie that bit about Key’s daughter shocked me. Then listening through a few times, I think it’s a bragging attempt, and a pick up line – sad I know. It’s not that unusual for hip-hop artist – to do these brags. I think they deliberately made this section of the song shocking, but he does a vocal twist at end – to introduce himself and make it apparent who he talking to.
That said, they use shock a lot in their songs, and sexist language. Here for the other tunes.
*Now that I have your attention, may I remind you that
130,000 ELIGIBLE PEOPLE UNDER 25 HAVE NOT YET ENROLLED.
The current PM does not care about these people. He does not care about the growing gap between the rich and the poor in our country. He does not care about the native people of our country. He does not care about the planet we depend upon to survive, the living organism that we as humans are a functioning part of. He does not care about the right we should all have to an education. He only cares about him and his friends.
I do not want to literally kill this man. I do not wish to have sexual relations with anybody related to him. Let’s not pretend a silly little song ever changed anything. Last I seen famine was still going pretty strong since ‘Heal The World’ came out. It’s just a song. No different from Thatcher era punk. Anyone ever heard “Maggie you’re a cunt”..?
What’s important is that we ENROL TO VOTE so that we have a chance to select someone to represent us who understands the concept of empathy.
I’m fed up with this dude. But if you want to vote for him, that’s your choice. Personally, I’m voting Greens but you can vote for whoever you like. You can choose between a whole bunch of different people who represent a whole bunch of different ideologies. That’s the beauty of the political system in NZ.
Please respect my right to express my disappointment for the leader of our country.*
Thats a well written statement. Clarifies the violent intent (none) and expands on the message.
I get what you’re saying adam re the boasting/ bragging and have heard it plenty of times in songs. Get’s a bit eye rolly though, as a woman hearing it. Thanks for sharing other tunes. I’ve made a mental note to have a listen when I get a chance.
I run a small business and none of the IMP policies worry me at all. I’m more worried about the mismanagement by national and the old boys clubs with infest national, and some could say labour.
This is not capitalism, in capitalism you got to take the hits and gains. The highs and the lows. This is profit taking and a mad rush to get the last of the resources.
Yep. It seems the Left have a bit of impression management and communication to the small business sector catch up with. Policies which make the life of small business owners simpler and give our customers more disposable income is all good for SMEs.
Because more then likely the Greens would come in as well and the Greens are wanting to implement more costs over water rights so why would farmers vote for more costs?
Kim Dotcom has told OneNews the big international name who will play a role in the bombshell he’ll drop on the prime minister: WikiLeaks founder and fugitive Julian Assange, who’s holed up in Ecuador’s London embassy, is set to take part in a pre-election attack on John Key.
“I can give you a hint. Someone who is currently locked up in an embassy might be on a live video link,” Mr Dotcom said.
Mr Dotcom had warned something big will come out on September 15, just five days from the election.
He has already hired journalist Glen Greenwald, who made public the Edward Snowdon leaks. Now the addition of Mr Assange confirms the September 15 event will be about New Zealand’s spying.
Asked will September 15 do more damage to Mr Key than the Dirty Politics book has, Mr Dotcom told OneNews: “I think so.”
KDC said that thing during the IMP launch about how he didn’t like the German PM so hacked his credit rating to zero, and there is another PM he doesn’t like. Makes me uncomfortable, when he talks about what he wants and likes etc, instead of talking about the general good. Still too much ego and I’m just glad he’s not gunning for someone on the left (this could just as easily be about a Labour govt as a NACT one).
While I understand how KDC’s actions fall outside of healthy political action – it’s also why IMP is the dark horse in this election.
Increasingly young people are no longer interested in conventionally sanctioned political actions. They increasingly see the entire system as compromised at best – irredeemably corrupted at worst.
For them this kind of direct action, redolent of the “V” and “Anonymous” memes, holds far more appeal.
Agreed, IMP are effective in what they do. I think I will just keep expressing my discomfit about KDC himself, because as bad as things are now we still have many good things to lose.
Am also getting sick of the whole “we’re fucked” as youth slogan thing. We do have choices, and more choices this election than ever. I really wish people would get over the idea that voting is about getting what one wants. It’s not, it’s about moving us towards a better place, or even just a place where it’s easier to do the real work of effecting change. I’ve never been able to vote for a party that represents me well, but that hasn’t stopped me from seeing the value in voting. All power to IMP, I hope they do really well, but I still think that we should be encouraging people to vote because it’s a form of power irrespective of whether there is a cool party to vote for or not (and it’s not like back in the FPP dark ages when I would have had to be voting Labour at this point 😉
Yeah – and it’s worth keeping in mind that a lot of real change comes from radicals outside of the system who over time learn to work effectively within it.
On the other hand the “we’re fucked” thing will need to find a legitimate political outlet sooner or later. Preferably sooner – and if KDC is the vehicle then so be it. No-one else seems to have put their hand up.
Yeah – and it’s worth keeping in mind that a lot of real change comes from radicals outside of the system who over time learn to work effectively within it.
or alternatively, pressure from radicals and mass movements which choose to never compromise sufficiently to become part of the establishment – but who by doing so effectively force those within the establishment to take those radical viewpoints into account. A historical example of this was FDR’s New Deal. Without massive pressure from workers and socialist movements – including riots and dozens of strikers killed – FDR would never have passed the New Deal. As a conciliatory figure trying to protect the future of capitalism, he had to.
Can include also the fact that TPPA is another attempt at resurrecting the MAI that was roundly rejected back in 1998. Laila Harre has pointed out to the role of online opposition in defeating the MAI and we can do it again [on video online that I viewed recently and I would be happy if someone can find it].
Worth referring to Bryan Gould’s piece in December last year which refers to the MAI-TPPA connection:
“Part of a protest march moves through Wellington in 1998, on its way to Parliament. The Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) was proposed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), of which New Zealand is a member. The MAI was intended to provide a framework for international investment based on highly liberalised national investment controls and improved investment protection, with effective dispute settlement procedures, open to non-OECD countries. The proposal provoked vehement opposition internationally. Those opposed argued the MAI favoured big business and was being imposed without adequate consultation. In the end, the initiative collapsed.”
EiE @19.1.1. Don’t like the song. Not the way to go.
On another note did anyone see, has anyone noticed David Fisher, about his relationship with Slater. Don’t have the link at hand. I wonder how many more we are going to see like this coming out of the word work.
It’s just a song. It won’t appeal to middle NZ sensibilities. And it’s not helpful for unpoisoning our politics. But Neoliberal policies are actually killing tens of thousands in NZ before their due time and we all accept that.
No, it isn’t mildly distasteful. It is way, way worse than that and sentiments encouraging rape and violence should not be considered justifiable by anybody professing to be left wing. I loathe John Key and fear for the future of NZ if he gets reelected. This song is more likely to get him sympathy at a time that those who thought he was great are beginning to ask questions. Really dumb.
I inwardly groan when I see a leftie express the anger in terms of violence or killing political opponents (in a country like NZ that isn’t a war zone). I don’t think it’a helpful to the left at all.
It’s because they either don’t want it to turn up in the polls – or they hoping they bury their heads long enough it will go away.
But just stop and talk to the young people, they are pissed off. They see what’s happening, they are not stupid. I talk to young mum’s and dads on a regular basis – they feel the future is going to be absolute hell for their kids. – I think they are right.
“I worry about what will replace it when the anger is expressed in the language of violence.”
Yeah it’s a worry alright. But it’s also entirely predictable considering the violence this govt and those they represent have inflicted on large segments of the populace.
This is a really important conversation. We’ve seen a generation of young people alienated from the political process – and that is never a stable condition.
Sooner or later something or someone will trigger that instability – and this small country may see consequences from our deepest nightmares.
It’s why the left must keep campaigning hard to get these people back voting.
Oh poor key and sophie
Key himself draws his kids into it. I’ll try and hunt it out but there’s the time Key had been bailed up about some shares – tranzrail? – and he quipped ‘ I even offered them to Max and he didn’t want them..’
The article linked on karol’s post perhaps anker? It’s an excellent article. Shines a light on a topic, their relationship with sources, that no other journalists, most likely for a myriad of reasons, have not been able or will not to raise.
Rod Oram on Radionz on housing policies at moment, National first then Labour. Good as usual.
Says that a big change will be needed from the trend to build expensive homes as being more profitable. He talks about the building sector needing to have sort of templates to design and build cheaper homes. If we had an active government, there would be model houses designed for country-wide use, for cost and materials and practicality designed by people using their specialist knowledge for the benefit of NZs. A Buildings department would be a good idea. I think we have something of that nature that is prevented from being the needed guide by some ill-advised ideology.
EiE @ 22.1 Yep that is true. I don’t have to like it. I understand why its happening. When your suppress people and their voice it breaks through and it is not pretty as it would have been if you let them have a say in the first place.
As ratshit ridiculous and plainly unprofessional as Gower can be in the visual medium Plunket comes across as the overbearing, hectoring bully in the talkback context. One for Gower here. Neither however approach the master of the universe chappie coining himself “Well Oi’ll Bee Fooked”.
The scum involved in #dirtypolitics were/are only a phone call removed from sinister shit like this.
The National Security Agency is secretly providing data to nearly two dozen U.S. government agencies with a “Google-like” search engine built to share more than 850 billion records about phone calls, emails, cellphone locations, and internet chats, according to classified documents obtained by The Intercept.
The documents provide the first definitive evidence that the NSA has for years made massive amounts of surveillance data directly accessible to domestic law enforcement agencies. Planning documents for ICREACH, as the search engine is called, cite the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration as key participants.
ICREACH contains information on the private communications of foreigners and, it appears, millions of records on American citizens who have not been accused of any wrongdoing. Details about its existence are contained in the archive of materials provided to The Intercept by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
and this published online, dated today … lots in there I don’t personally understand, but the machinations seem deep and acidly corrosive. Have we just been been surfing on a cesspit this whole time ? Eeew.
ah, more traditional right-wing stalkerising.
Tell me, did farrar base the alleged green-connection on stolen membership records, or simply because the guy turned up to a protest?
I think he based it more on what the guy put on his own facebook page however I concede it may have been put there by a vengeful SIS in an effort to make the drop kick look bad
yes, because whenever I see someone in the court news I need to see what posts on their facebook page can be twisted for my purposes 🙄 #rightwingstalkers
protip: not everyone who says “fuck john key” is a “green party activist”.
Hey PR, was it you who – a week or so before #hagerbook – was here bragging that the dirty tricks crew have one story/smear to release every day until the election?
This shit has got to end. So many questions like that from Brent Robinson going unanswered. He quite categorically states that Mitchell told him he had hired Lusk and Slater to do the dirty work. Now Mitchell is denying ever having spoken to Robinson about it.
This guy Mitchell is an ex mercenary, the worst type of hired thug you can get. What do the good people of Rodney think? More needs to be made of this story including some effing journos door-stepping Mitchell.
xox
Present at Oxfam Climate Change Debate in Wellington. VUW. Rutherford house. Greens present,Labour present, NZFirst present. National absent. The worlds under serious threat. National , no show. Incredible.
Funny eh? Seems that the narrow constraints of polite political discourse conducted by a handful of utterly conflicted and well-heeled insiders has somehow completely misread the depth of the disgust and contempt this govt inspires in many, many people.
John Key failed to distance himself from Slater even when he was on the West Coast and face to face with the mother of the young man over whose death Slater danced for joy and talked with Key about. Key had nothing to say to her and Key stood with Slater. Says it all.
Interesting that Labour’s David Parker (at the debate in Queenstown tonight) argues against ‘low value’ immigration on the basis the modern economy has a diminishing need for labour, yet he is intent on pushing the age of Super out, increasing the labour pool.
That just goes to show that he’s an unreconstructed Rogernome at heart. If the left lose this time, I think he will be at least as responsible as any individual.
Weka. Use caliber to manage your books. It’s pretty much an iTunes equivalent for ebooks. Apparently there are addins for it that you can find on the interweb that automatically perform various tasks. Depending on the task u want to automate, just Google for it.
do you mean Calibre? I already use that, but it can’t read the Kindle version of Dirty Politics. Once imported into Calibre, it will prompt Kindle to open and show the book there instead. Like I said, I tried various ripping options and none of them could get past the DRM, so I’m curious how you think it can be ripped easily within a few minutes.
Edit: ah ok, I see what you mean. There is a Kindleunpackit addon that creates a new file that can be read in Calibre and presumably ripped to PDF etc. cheers.
Next year is an election year, and Labour needs money to fund its campaign. So naturally, they're selling access:Labour is charging wealthy business figures $1500-a-head to lunch with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at its annual conference later this month. [...] On the weekend beginning November 29th, around 800 delegates will ...
Yesterday the government announced its changes to tenancy laws, including an end to no-cause evictions, limits on rent increases, and anonyminity for tenants who defend their rights against bad landlords (sadly necessary because landlords are scum who maintain blacklists of "uppity" tenants). They're all good moves, and have resulted in ...
In 2003 New Zealand sent a Provincial Reconstruction Team to Afghanistan to support America's doomed war there. While there, they conducted regular weapons practice on local firing ranges, littering the landscape with unexploded ammunition. These ranges weren't secure - they're on land used by locals for animal herding - so ...
Green MP Gareth Hughes has announced he will retire at the election. Its understandable - he's been there ten years, and wants to actually see his children grow up rather than miss it while drowning in the toxic parliamentary sewer. But his departure is also a huge loss for the ...
Words and images by Jacqui GibsonGone are Auckland Museum’s days of doing science using a museum-centric academic approach, after Māori land rights holders Ngāti Kuri gave the museum an ultimatum.Tom Trnski holding a fossilised whale tooth from the Far North.Aussie-born Head of Natural Sciences at Auckland Museum ...
MediaWorks announced in October 2019 that it intended to sell off its struggling television business and cancel or cut back on several popular local programmes, including New Zealand Today, Married at First SightNew Zealand and 7 Days. Its radio and outdoor advertising arms are currently performing well, but MediaWorks’ ...
Westminster voting intention:CON: 44% (+3)LAB: 28% (-1)LDEM: 14% (-1)BREX: 6% (-)via @OpiniumResearch, surveyed this weekChgs. w/ 08 Nov— Britain Elects (@britainelects) 16 November 2019 This, of course, doesn't look good. Labour have been chucking big, headline grabbing policies left, right and centre ... Well, maybe not right. Left, left ...
Some readers may remember that I mentioned last year that I was applying for NZ citizenship. I filled out the paperwork and had my original citizenship interview in February. Everything went well until they discovered that, because I had spent five months in the US in 2017, I had not ...
by Deirdre O’Neill It is becoming quite acceptable for certain sections of the left to declare that people like me – women who are ‘gender critical’ – should not be allowed in leftist or anarchist spaces. Leaving aside the arrogance and implicit authoritarianism of this claim, its lack of critical ...
There is an article in The Conversation, written by Jeremy P. Shapiro (Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University), about what he sees as the psychologically-based underpinnings of three main matters that seem to vex people all around the planet. The article is titled “The Thinking ...
. . Blogger Martyn Bradbury has won his case against unreasonable search and surveillance against the NZ Police; and subsequent Police attempts to produce evidence in secrecy, in a closed Court. His case highlights a disturbing growing trend in Aotearoa New Zealand for State power to be used against ...
The Committee of Disobedient Women has intercepted an email from Dr Emma Eejut, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Massey University to the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Jan Thomas. Dear Jan, Thank you for your courageous move. I think 10 pages of blether** should tie any of the students game enough to try holding ...
That's the only response to the findings of the Ombudsman's investigation into LGOIMA practices at the Christchurch City Council:My investigation identified serious concerns about the Council’s leadership and culture, and its commitment to openness and transparency. In particular, Council staff raised concerns with me about various methods employed by some ...
NZ First seems to be nakedly trying to enrich itself from public office:A powerful New Zealand First figure helped establish a forestry company that then pushed for money from two key funding streams controlled by a New Zealand First Minister. An RNZ investigation has found Brian Henry, lawyer for Winston ...
Behrouz Boochani is an award winning author and journalist. He is also a refugee, who for the past six years has been detained in Australia's offshore gulag on Manus Island, and in Papua New Guinea. But last night, with the cooperation of the WORD Christchurch festival and Amnesty International, he ...
Different Strokes: If a multicultural immigration policy imposes no obligation on immigrant communities to acknowledge and ultimately embrace their host nation’s most cherished traditions and values, then how is that nation to prevent itself from being reduced to a collection of inward-looking and self-replicating ethnic and cultural enclaves?THE COALITION GOVERNMENT’S ...
Protective Zone: Reading the rules and guidelines released by Massey University, it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that its governing body considers the whole concept of free speech a disruptive threat to the orderly imparting of orthodox academic knowledge.IN TRUE ORWELLIAN fashion, Massey University has announced its commitment to ...
Farmers held a hate-march on Parliament today, complete with MAGA hats, gun-nut signs, and gendered insults. While supposedly about a grab-bag of issues - including, weirdly, mental health - it was clear that the protest was about one thing, and one thing only: climate change. And specifically, forestry "destroying" rural ...
The Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security released their annual report today, and I've been busy reading through it. In amongst the usual review of what they've been doing all year, there's a few interesting bits. For example, a discussion on "agency retention and disposal of information", which points out that ...
Recently more than 150 post-graduate students and young scientists presented an open letter to the Green Party via The Spinoff, encouraging them to reconsider their position on genetic modification. Their target is tackling climate change issues.[1] Can any party continue to be dismissive about genetic modification (GM) contributing to ...
by Deirdre O’Neill Under Thatcher and then Blair and continuing up until our contemporary moment, the working class has seen its culture slowly and progressively destroyed. The change from an industrial society to a service society produced a marked shift in focus from the working class as the backbone of ...
Since 2013, the Australian government has detained refugees without trial in Pacific gulags, where they are abused, tortured, and driven to suicide. The policy is not just an abuse of human rights and possible crime against humanity; it has also had a corrosive effect on the states Australia uses as ...
It seems fair to say that we currently live in a problematic political moment in world history. Democracies are in decline and dictatorships are on the rise. Primordial, sectarian and post-modern divisions have re-emerged, are on the rise or have been accentuated by political evolutions of the moment such as ...
Last month, Greenpeace head Russel Norman surrendered his speaking slot at an EPA conference to student climate activist Sorcha Carr, who told the EPA exactly what she thought of them. It was a bold move, which confronted both regulators and polluters (or, as the EPA calls them, "stakeholders") with the ...
The core principle supposedly underlying New Zealand's electoral finance regime is transparency: parties can accept large donations from rich people wanting to buy policy, but only if they tell the public they've been bought. Most parties abide by this, so we know that TOP was wholly-owned by Gareth Morgan, and ...
Today is a Member's Day, probably the second-to-last one of the year, and its a big one, with the Third Reading of David Seymour's End of Life Choice Bill. last Member's Day it was reported back from committee, after MPs voted narrowly to make it subject to a (rules TBA) ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzThe growth of the human population over the last 70 ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women In her excellent oral submission to the Abortion reform select committee on 31st October on behalf of Otago University’s Department of Public Health, historian and public health researcher Hera Cook stated: “We would ask that the committee not use the term ‘pregnant persons’ and ...
by Don Franks In 1957, E M Forster wrote, of his greatest work: “The India described in ‘A Passage to India’ no longer exists either politically or socially. Change had begun even at the time the book was published ( 1924) and during the following quarter of a century it ...
The Referendums Framework Bill was due back from select committee today. But there's no report on it. Instead, the bill has been bounced back to the House under Standing order 29593) because the Committee didn't bother to produce one. They probably tried. But given the membership of the committee (which ...
Two years into New Zealand’s Labour-led government, the long-delayed Zero Carbon Bill became law on 7 November. Passed essentially unanimously, the lengthy public debates and political manoeuvring faded away until the final passage was even anticlimactic: Flipping through the @nzstuff@DomPost I was starting to wonder if I’d dreamt ...
Now the Zero Carbon Bill is law, what's next? Obviously, the ETS changes currently before select committee are going to be the next battleground. But we're also going to get a good idea of where we're going, and if the progress the Zero Carbon Act promises is good enough, during ...
Grant PearceThe effects of the current Australian bushfires in New South Wales and Queensland (and also again in California) are devastating and far-reaching. To date, the fires have resulted in several lives being lost and many homes and properties destroyed. Here in New Zealand, the impacts have been only ...
A passing comment in a post the other day about the labour force participation rates of older people prompted me to pull down the fuller data and see what we could see about various participation rates over the decades since the HLFS began in 1986. As it happens, the ...
Distract And Divert: The rise of what we have come to call “Identity Politics” represents the ideological manifestation of the ruling class’s objective need to destroy class politics, and of the middle-class’s subjective need to justify their participation in the process.THE RELIEF of the ruling class can only be imagined. ...
"I saw a newspaper picture,From the political campaignA woman was kissing a child,Who was obviously in pain.She spills with compassion,As that young child'sFace in her hands she gripsCan you imagine all that greed and avariceComing down on that child's lips?" ...
Dr Matt Boyd, Prof Michael Baker, Prof Nick WilsonThe Global Health Security Index which considers pandemic threats has just been published. Unfortunately, NZ scores approximately half marks (54/100), coming in 35th in the world rankings – far behind Australia. This poor result suggests that the NZ Government needs to ...
The Zero Carbon Act is inadequate, with a weak methane target designed to give farmers a free ride. But it turns out it could have been worse: Climate Change Minister James Shaw was so desperate to get National on board, he wanted to gut that target, and leave it in ...
The Herald reprints an Australian story on a couple of tragic deaths in Bali from drinking cocktails that had methanol in them. The story argues that methanol is likely the result of home distillation. But what the young tourists were experiencing was far from a hangover. They’d consumed a toxic cocktail ...
Last month, the police announced a trial of specialist roaming armed units, which would drive round (poor, brown) areas in armoured SUVs, armed to the teeth. When they announced the trial, they told us it was about having armed police "ready to attend major incidents at any time if needed". ...
Spain went to the polls today in the second elections this year, after the Socialists (who had come to power in a confidence vote, then gone to the polls in April) rejected the offer of a coalition with the left-wing PoDemos, and instead decided to gamble n a better outcome ...
A couple of days ago I attended (and spoke at) the University of Waikato’s “LearnFest” event. There were lots of talks and sessions on very diverse aspects of teaching, mostly at tertiary level. One was by Myra Williamson from Te Piringa Faculty of Law here at Waikato, on Contract Cheating ...
There will be a transit of Mercury – the planet Mercury will pass across the face of the Sun – taking place at sunrise in New Zealand on Tuesday, 12th November. It was by observing such an event 250 years ago that James Cook and his scientist colleagues were able ...
Since becoming the world’s first openly transexual mayor and member of parliament, Georgina Beyer has been recognised as a trailblazer for trans rights. Daphna Whitmore talks with her about where she sees the current trans movement We start out talking about legislation the government put on hold that would have ...
If FFNZ really put their faith in “Top Medical Journals” they would now be amending their billboards to recognise new research results. Image from FFNZ but updated to agree with the latest research. ...
National Messiah? Chris Luxon identifies himself as an evangelical Christian. If he is genuine in this self-characterisation, then he will take every opportunity his public office provides to proselytise on behalf of his faith. He will also feel obliged to bear witness against beliefs and practices he believes to be ...
I'm going to make a Reckless Prediction™ that the Tories have 'topped out' in the 'poll of polls' / Britain Elects multipoll tracker at about 38%, and in the next week we will start to see Labour creep up on them.In fact, we might just be seeing the start of ...
by The Council of Disobedient Women Lizzie Marvelly: “I may have missed this… has @afterellen gone all terf-y? Or am I reading something incorrectly? “ https://twitter.com/LizzieMarvelly/status/1191840059105742849 After Ellen is a lesbian website that is unashamedly pro-lesbian, as you’d expect. So why is Ms Marvelly so bothered about lesbians having their ...
Did you know there once was a time when it was illegal to be a gypsy (aka Romani) in Britain?That was between 1530, when the Egyptians Act was passed, and 1856, when it was repealed.Amongst other things, the act forbade the entry of 'Egyptians' into England, ordered those already there ...
Some days I sit and think, “what will I write…?” What do you say when you get to 1000 posts? Maybe you just start where you are, diverge to where this all began, then offer a collection of reader’s favourite posts, and a few of your own? (And throw in ...
Counter-Puncher: The “activists” and “radicals” (his own words) from the Indian community who took such strong exception to Shane Jones’ remarks about Immigration NZ’s treatment of arranged marriages, may end up bitterly regretting their intervention. Jones is not the sort of person who turns the other cheek to his critics.SHANE ...
In the spirit of Remember, remember the fifth of November, let's keep this in mind FOREVER.
Oh dear. Extraordinary interview on PM with Andrew Bridgen and @EvanHD just now. Bridgen was defending Jacob Rees Mogg’s Grenfell comments. Evan asked him if JRM had meant to say he would have left ...
Collision Course? In conditions of ideological white-out, the international bankers’ “Woop-Woop! Pull Up!” warning may have come too late to save global capitalism.WHAT DOES IT MEAN when international bankers are more willing to embrace radical solutions than our politicians and their electors? At both the International Monetary Fund and the ...
Pertussis (whooping cough) is a conundrum. It is a disease that was described hundreds of years ago and the bacteria that causes it (Bordetella pertussis) isolated in 1906. We have had vaccines for about 80 years but this disease is defiant in the face of human immunity. I wanted to ...
The Zero Carbon Bill has just passed its third reading, uanimously. In the end, National supported it - but we all know they'll turn around and gut it the moment they regain power. Meanwhile, I guess ACT's David Seymour didn't even bother to show up. I am on record as ...
Dr Lindsay Robertson, Dr Jerram Bateman, Professor Janet HoekMembers of the public health community hold divergent views on how access to vaping products or electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) products should be arranged. Some believe ENDS should be as widely available as smoked tobacco and argue for liberal ...
When the Police were trying to cover up for the National Party over Dirty Politics, they went all-in with their abuses of power. They illegally search Nicky Hager's house, violating his journalistic privilege and invading his privacy. They unlawfully acquired Hager's bank records. They did the same to left-wing blogger ...
Last month, in response to a wave of protests by Extinction Rebellion, the British government purported to ban their protests from the whole of London. It was a significant interference with the freedoms of expression and assembly, and another sign of the country's decline into tyranny. But now, a court ...
Last year, the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security reported on significant problems with the intelligence warrant system. While they were unwilling to declare any warrant "irregular" (meaning unlawful) due to the recent law change, they were also not willing to give the system a clean bill of health. Now, they've ...
The National Party has come out in support of encouraging greater vaccination uptake. But it sure isn’t the way I’d do it. National’s suggested docking the benefits of those on benefit whose kids aren’t keeping up with their vaccinations. Some in National have suggested extending that to payments under Working ...
Feeding The Flames: It is simply not enough to demand an end to “corruption”, or “inequality”, or the overbearing influence of the authorities in Beijing. These are just “lowest common denominator” demands: the sort of slogans that pull people onto the streets. They are not a plan.WHERE’S THE PLAN? Across ...
The labour market statistics have been released, and unemployment has risen to 4.2%. There are 115,000 unemployed - 11,000 fewer than when Labour took office. In that time the minimum wage has gone up by $2 an hour, which shows that the right's fears about increases causing unemployment are simply ...
The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has called for submissions on Andrew Little's tyrannicalTerrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill. Normally I encourage participation in the democratic process. I am not doing so in this case. Instead, I encourage all of you to boycott this submissions process, and to post ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzIf tiny concentrations of carbon dioxide can hold enough heat ...
Aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, and within it, one of the fastest sources is elite travel: billionaires flitting around the world in their private jets, spewing excessive pollution into the atmosphere just so they can avoid mixing with us dirty peasants. But in ...
That's what we face if we don't stop climate change, according to a warning from 11,000 scientists:The world’s people face “untold suffering due to the climate crisis” unless there are major transformations to global society, according to a stark warning from more than 11,000 scientists. “We declare clearly and unequivocally ...
by Phil Duncan Here’s just a few of the kind of threats issued day in and day out against gender-critical women – feminists, marxists, etc – overwhelmingly by MEN (albeit men identifying as women). “Kill all Terfs”. “Shoot a Terf today”. “All terfs deserve to be shot in the head”. ...
This is the third of the synopses of parts of the opening chapter of John Smith’s Imperialism in the 21st Century (New York, Monthly Review Press, 2016). The synopsis and commentary below is written by Phil Duncan. Unlike the humble cup of coffee and t-shirt that we looked at in ...
Tom MooreTraditionally a food source and cutting tool, freshwater mussels/kākahi are now widely valued as water filters that help clean our waterbodies and maintain ecosystem health throughout Aotearoa. The improvement they provide in water quality can make it easier for other animals to live in streams and rivers, as ...
And to think he gave all the potential goodwill away with that moronic, cult-like statement (repeated ad nauseam by many National hardliners) that Key is quite simply “the greatest PM we ever had”…Installation complete: this was nothing ...
The Zero Carbon Bill is back in the House today for its second reading. While this isn't the final stage, its still effectively D-Day for the bill. Because today, at around 5pm, is when we're going to find out if it has a majority, whether National will support it or ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First backs the public to decide on the End of Life Choice Bill via a referendum at the 2020 General Election. The Bill, with New Zealand First’s referendum provision incorporated, passed its final reading in Parliament this evening. New Zealand First Spokesperson for ...
Darroch Ball, Spokesperson for Justice New Zealand First is proud that a key Coalition Agreement commitment which will provide for a more transparent and effective criminal justice system has been realised. Legislation to establish the Criminal Cases Review Commission, an independent body focused on identifying and responding to possible miscarriages of ...
"Today we have made a choice that will leave a legacy... I hope that means that future generations will see that we, in New Zealand, were on the right side of history." - Jacinda Ardern, Third Reading of the Zero Carbon Bill ...
Darroch Ball, New Zealand First List MP A Member’s bill has been proposed that would provide income tax exemptions for all New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel while on operational deployment overseas. The Income Tax (Exemption for Salary or Wages of NZDF Members on Active Deployment) Amendment Bill proposed by New Zealand First ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader New Zealand First is proud to have brought common sense to the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill, which passed its final reading in Parliament today. Party Leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says months of hard work went into negotiating a balanced ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First has listened to calls to recognise paramedics as registered health professionals under the Health Practitioners’ Competence Assurance Act (the Act).Today, the Coalition Government announced plans for paramedics to be registered as health practitioners under the Act, and the establishment of a ...
We began the week by commemorating the New Zealand Wars and celebrating a major increase in the number of teachers. Then, we were busy supporting offenders into work and getting our rail back on track after years of underinvestment. And that's just the start! ...
In October I was sworn in as the Mayor of Lower Hutt.It’s the privilege of my life to serve Hutt people as their Mayor. There is something really special to be able to serve the community where I was raised, and where I live. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Racing Racing Minister Winston Peters met with Korea Racing Authority Chairperson Nak Soon Kim in Seoul today to discuss closer cooperation between the New Zealand and Korean horse racing industries. As part of the visit to the Seoul Racecourse, Mr Peters witnessed ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $10 million to establish Otago as the centre of New Zealand’s creative digital industry over the next ten years, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “The initiative will bring us closer to the vision of ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF)’s skills and employment programme will help young Otago people into long-term forestry careers, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. Te Ara Mahi will invest $63,000 in the 2020 school year to support eight 17 and 18 ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) will support local plans to revitalise and stimulate economic development opportunities in Otago, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. The four Regional Economic Development Ministers have approved an in-principle investment of $19.9 million towards the region’s ...
Mark Patterson, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First is pleased to have received the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) report on the Coalition Government’s Mycoplasma bovis eradication efforts, which shows significant progress in the fight against the disease. New Zealand First Spokesperson for Primary Industries, Mark Patterson, says the report’s findings ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon David Parker, Minister for Trade and Export Growth The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing to support economic growth opportunities for Otago’s engineering and manufacturing sectors, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Trade and Export Minister David Parker announced today. Almost $20 million ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Foreign Minister Winston Peters and his South Korean counterpart, Kang Kyung-wha, discussed in Seoul today opportunities to work more closely in the Pacific and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Mr Peters and Minister Kang confirmed New Zealand and the ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Regional Economic Development Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Minister for Māori Development The three marae in the historic Parihaka Pa complex in Taranaki have been upgraded to high speed broadband with the support of the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. “Connecting the ...
Fa’atalofa atu, malo e lelei, Kia ora koutou katoa Thank you to the Child Poverty Action Group for asking me to be here today to provide an update on some of the things that have been happening across my the social development portfolio. Can I firstly acknowledge the vast ...
***Please check against delivery*** Good morning everyone. It is a pleasure to be with you this morning to open this year’s New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Conference and AGM. Firstly, thank you Dr Alan Jackson, NZTR Chair for your introduction. And let us acknowledge also: The NZTR Board; Dean McKenzie, Chair ...
The Government has delivered on its promise to the over one million New Zealanders who now rent to make it fairer and more secure, Associate Minister of Housing (Public Housing) Kris Faafoi has announced today. Both renters and landlords will benefit from the suite of practical changes to the Residential ...
A marine conservation milestone - the 20th anniversary of the establishment of Te Tapuwae o Rongokako Marine Reserve - is being celebrated today at a community event in Tairāwhiti/East Coast attended by the Minister of Conservation, Eugenie Sage. “The creation of this marine reserve in November 1999 was a game ...
The Government is asking the food industry to step up work to tackle obesity including reducing sugar, fat and salt in their products, better information for consumers, and tighter restrictions on advertising to children. Health Minister David Clark and Food Safety Minister Damien O’Connor have responded to a ...
ew, modern emergency department and outpatient facilities at Queenstown’s Lakes District Hospital mean better emergency care for the growing tourist mecca’s visitors and locals, says Health Minister David Clark. Today Dr Clark officially opened the hospital’s redeveloped Emergency Department and Outpatient facilities. The new facilities include: • An extended Emergency Department ...
Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter says today’s release of sexual and reproductive health data reinforces the significance of the Government’s commitment to providing free or very low-cost contraception. The Ministry of Health today published statistics from the Ministry of Health’s 2014/15 Health Survey. “It is important people can make ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced that at the request of the Samoan Government, New Zealand will be providing further support to Samoa as it faces a worsening measles outbreak. “In response to a request from the people of Samoa, New Zealand is providing 3000 measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) ...
“The new Disability Action Plan 2019–2023 moves us towards the inclusive and accessible New Zealand that this government has committed to,” Minister for Disability Issues Carmel Sepuloni announced today. “The Action Plan was designed by disabled people, their family and supporters, the disability sector and government agencies. It will ensure ...
Third Singapore-New Zealand Defence Ministers’ Meeting 14 November 2019 Joint Statement 1. Defence Ministers Ron Mark and Dr Ng Eng Hen today conducted their third annual Singapore-New Zealand Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Singapore. 2. Building on the Enhanced Partnership signed between both countries in May this year, this annual meeting ...
A Bill to improve the court system’s response to sexual violence has passed its first reading in Parliament today. Justice Minister Andrew Little says the Sexual Violence Legislation Bill will reduce the trauma sexual violence complainants experience in court, while maintaining defendants’ fundamental rights and making sure the trial process ...
Streamlined payment practices are a step closer for Kiwi businesses with the formal launch of New Zealand’s e-Invoicing framework. Small Business Minister Stuart Nash says the government has now established the structure to enable automated and direct data exchange between the accounting systems of buyers and sellers. “The move to ...
Another 51 quarantine officers and four new biosecurity detector dog teams will help protect New Zealand from invasive pests and diseases this summer, says Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor. “The Government is delivering on its commitment to strengthen New Zealand’s biosecurity system and support our valuable primary sector “New Zealand’s flora, fauna ...
A new report has found New Zealand’s space sector contributed $1.69 billion to the economy in the last financial year and employs 12,000 people, Minister for Economic Development Phil Twyford announced today. The report by Deloitte was commissioned by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and shows New Zealand ...
Judge Coral Shaw has been appointed as the new Chair of the Royal Commission into Historical Abuse in State Care and in the Care of Faith-based Institutions, Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin announced today. "Judge Shaw, who is currently one of the inquiry commissioners, is extremely well qualified for the ...
The Government has confirmed its third major mental health facility upgrade since the Budget, this time at Palmerston North Hospital. The Prime Minister and Health Minister today visited MidCentral DHB to announce that $30 million has been allocated to upgrade its acute mental health facility. It follows earlier announcements in ...
The roll out of the National Bowel Screening Programme has reached the halfway mark, with 10 out of 20 District Health Boards now part of the programme. MidCentral DHB, which covers Palmerston North, Manawatu and surrounding districts, this week became the latest to DHB to offer free bowel screening to ...
The Government welcomes PHARMAC’s decision to fund a vaccine to protect young people from meningococcal disease from 1 December this year. “Meningococcal disease is a serious threat which people at higher risk should be protected from,” says Associate Health Minister Julie Anne Genter. “The combined pharmaceutical budget was increased by ...
Groups involved with innovative fisheries research projects are encouraged to apply for government support in the latest funding round from the Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures programme. Fisheries Minister Stuart Nash says the SFF Futures funding is designed to be flexible enough to support small or large projects across a ...
The Government has fixed an issue affecting how Immigration New Zealand has processed visa applications for culturally arranged marriages, which will now see a consistent process applied which ensures people with legitimate arranged marriages can visit New Zealand while also preventing any rorting of the system. Earlier this year Immigration ...
The Royal Commission into the Attacks on Christchurch Mosques will report back on 30 April 2020 to give it more time to hear submissions and consider information, Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin announced today. The Royal Commission was originally scheduled to report back to Government by 10 December 2019. “There has ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Washington DC today to attend a ministerial meeting focused on defeating ISIS, and to continue pursuing New Zealand’s trade opportunities. Mr Peters will participate in a meeting of Foreign and Defence Ministers from key countries contributing to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. ...
The recently crowned Bird of the Year, the hoiho/yellow eyed penguin, is getting a much needed helping hand alongside more than 168 other community conservation projects announced Minister for Conservation Eugenie Sage today. 168 community conservation projects throughout New Zealand are benefiting from $8 million in government grants, including $500,000 ...
Controls on assault rifles and semi-automatic firearms are to be broadened to include some types of pistols, under changes to a bill currently making its way through Parliament. Police Minister Stuart Nash has tabled a Supplementary Order Paper to the Arms Legislation Bill, which is currently before a Select Committee ...
Minister of Defence Ron Mark will travel to Singapore today to conduct a counterpart visit and to co-chair the third annual Singapore-New Zealand Defence Ministers’ Meeting with his counterpart, Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen. “Singapore is one of our most important defence partners in the region, and our ...
Nelson’s Salisbury School is to be rebuilt, creating a modern and suitable learning environment for students at the residential special school, Education Minister Chris Hipkins and Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin announced today. The school for girls aged 8-15, in Richmond, was earmarked for closure by National until the process ...
The panel undertaking a comprehensive review of the Resource Management Act has identified the main issues to be addressed and options for reform and is calling for feedback to inform its final report. In July the Government announced the comprehensive review of the resource management system, including the RMA - ...
An important safety valve has been added to New Zealand’s criminal justice system with the third reading of the Criminal Cases Review Commission Bill today. The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) will investigate claimed miscarriages of justice. “We’ve seen how our justice system can very occasionally get things spectacularly wrong, ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters welcomes the tabling of the Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) 2019 Annual Report in Parliament today. He says the 2019 Annual Report marks the point when New Zealand’s racing industry’s decline was arrested and a turnaround started. RITA’s 2019 Annual Report recorded an industry net profit ...
The New Zealand Government is today sending 21 firefighters to help fight the ongoing catastrophic Australian bushfires. “The fires in Australia are in some of the toughest, most challenging conditions ever,” says Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin. “As of yesterday morning, there were 100 active bushfire-related incidents across Queensland and ...
More frontline support for schools through a new education agency, as part of a redesigned Ministry of Education More support for principals and school boards including through a new centre of leadership and local leadership advisor roles New independent disputes panels for parents and students Management of school property ...
The Government’s reform of the Tomorrow’s Schools system is a watershed moment in education and an opportunity to create meaningful change for ākonga Māori and their whānau, Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis said today. “Last year through Kōrero Mātauranga | Education Conversation, Māori teachers, parents, ākonga, whānau, hapū and iwi ...
Infrastructure Minister is welcoming the first of many updated project pipelines from the newly established New Zealand Infrastructure Commission today. The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga, has released an expanded pipeline of major capital projects – another crucial step towards delivering better infrastructure outcomes. “The first iteration of the ...
Tougher gun laws designed to improve public safety through firearms prohibition orders are proposed in a new document released for public input. Police Minister Stuart Nash says firearms prohibition orders (FPOs) would give new powers to Police to ensure high-risk individuals come nowhere near firearms. “We have already prohibited the ...
Andy Coupe has been confirmed as TVNZ’s new Board Chair. “Mr Coupe has strong commercial and capital markets experience and TVNZ has benefited from his technical knowledge of business and finance, as well as his extensive governance experience,” the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media Kris Faafoi said. Andy ...
Associate Minister of Transport Julie Anne Genter today officially opened a separated pathway, following the completion of the Kaiwharawhara Stream bridge, which will improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians along Hutt Road. The $6.8m Hutt Road project provides a separated path for cycling and pedestrians, the replacement of informal parking ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters today announced the appointment of career diplomat Si’alei van Toor as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Russia. “I’m pleased to appoint Ms van Toor to this position. She brings a wealth of experience to the role having previously served as Senior Trade Adviser to the ...
The Treasury’s 2019 Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) will be released on Wednesday December 11, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Coalition Government will publish the 2020 Budget Policy Statement at the same time, outlining the priorities for Budget 2020. Further details on arrangements for the release will ...
A new initiative to better support small businesses through hands-on mentoring and advice has been launched by the Minister for Small Business. The first event in the Kiwi Business Boost series of regional workshops and online tools has been launched in Wairoa by Stuart Nash. “The Business Boost initiative combines ...
The latest Quarterly Connectivity Report shows that more and more New Zealanders are moving to Ultra-fast Broadband (UFB), with Rolleston having the highest uptake at 74 per cent, as at the end of September. “This means that nearly three quarters of Rolleston’s households and businesses have moved to ultra-fast services. ...
The Good Citizen podcast focuses on the way good design – and good people – can change cities for the better. In this episode, Jeremy Hansen talks to architect Richard Goldie about his bold idea for a partially submerged stadium on Auckland’s waterfront, a project that’s now a finalist in ...
Former prime minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer QC has published two books with Andrew Butler calling for a written, codified constitution that sets out ‘in an accessible form and a single document the fundamental rules and principles under which New Zealand is to be governed’. A road trip and consultation attracted ...
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.Housing Luke Malpass and Henry Cooke (Stuff): Government hikes claims thresholds for bad landlords, increases ...
People with intellectual disabilities and their families are struggling to access support more than ever before, as the disability sector faces a now $574 million annual funding shortfall, says IHC. ...
The Labour-led coalition may have to generate a second wave of Jacindamania if it is to win another term in the Beehive. Re-election is not an impossible dream, despite the failure of Labour to deliver what many of those who voted for it in 2017 expected. Retiring Green MP Gareth Hughes ...
A corporate undertaker talks top tips for making sure you get paid, reining in rogue liquidators, and having a heart for those who’ve lost money.PwC’s John Fisk has handled high profile company failures from Pike River to Lombard Finance and the Ross Asset Management Ponzi scheme. He also chairs the ...
Armed police represent a serious cause for concern, especially for the most vulnerable, writes the chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation.The Mental Health Foundation has publicly condemned the police trial of special armed response teams patrolling three districts around New Zealand. We’re extremely worried these trials will result in ...
International crime rings are increasingly targeting New Zealanders’ bank accounts to launder proceeds from scams and fraud. Bronwyn Groot, Fraud Education Manager at the Commission for Financial Capability (CFFC) is highlighting the rising incidence ...
A just-released report shows that the food industry wants to stay in a business-as-usual mode with a few minor tweaks around the edges. In response, the New Zealand Government appeared comfortable with that approach, and provided no Government plans for comprehensive ...
New Zealand consumers will be left in the dark about foods grown in Australia that have been created using gene editing techniques. On the 13 November the Australian Senator Rice put up a motion to disallow, or overturn, the recently passed Gene Technology ...
As Aotearoa plans for festive season celebrations, The Salvation Army is preparing to make its house a home to hundreds of men, women and children who have nowhere else to stay. ...
Landlords say they feel under siege with the government planning to make it tougher for them to boot out troublesome tenants; and skilled immigrants waiting for a residents visa say its unfair officials are fast tracking applications for those on salaries over $105,000. ...
Standing with the farmers, New Conservative is committed to pushing back against the lunacy of the ETS and Carbon Zero commitments by this government. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tomas Trescak, Senior Lecturer in Intelligent Systems, Western Sydney University Just a few years ago, virtual reality (VR) was being showered with very real money. The industry raised an estimated US$900 million in venture capital in 2016, but by 2018 that figure ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rowena Maguire, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Institute for Future Environments, Queensland University of Technology Over the past two weeks, bushfires have raged across New South Wales and Queensland. While the narrative appears focused on potential causes and political point-scoring, what’s lost ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susan Davis, Chair of Women’s Health, Monash University At menopause, a woman’s ovaries lose their reproductive function. Eggs are no longer released and the production of the hormones oestrogen and progesterone falls. It’s the lowered levels of oestrogen after menopause that gives ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julian Bolleter, Deputy Director, Australian Urban Design Research Centre, University of Western Australia Around the world, the vast majority of people are flocking to cities not to dwell in their centres but to live in the new suburbs expanding their outer limits. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dr Natalya Saldanha, Academic, RMIT University Like any eight-year-old, Ryan Kaji loves to play with toys. But when Ryan plays, millions watch. Since the age of four he’s been the star of his own YouTube channel. All up his videos have gained ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kieran Wong, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, Monash University Indigenous voices are finally being acknowledged as important voices in Australian galleries and museums. Since 2014, I have worked as an advisor to Western Australia’s New Museum, a A$450 million project and one of ...
Retiring Green MP Gareth Hughes says the pace of change in the current Government is not fast enough for his liking but that is not the reason he is quitting politics. ...
The Superdiversity Institute for Law, Policy and Business is releasing its latest report today on Culturally, ethnically and linguistically diverse parties in the Courts: A Chinese case study . The Report’s author, Mai Chen, Chair of the Superdiversity ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Doubts emerge about Auckland port move, NZDF leaves death-causing material behind in Afghanistan, and laws around renting to be shaken up.Over the last week, the ramifications of moving most of the operations of Auckland’s port north to Whangarei have been ...
An ambitious new partnership between Sky Sports and more than 50 sports promises more free sport for Kiwis. Suzanne McFadden looks at how it will change the way we see female athletes ...
Catriona MacLennan helped conduct a survey of the top NZ companies to establish the ethnicity of their directors. The results were not surprising, but also far from encouraging. ...
Episode 1 in a series on the trials of injured animals as they’re rescued, rehabilitated and released back into the wild follows the rescue of a yellow-eyed penguin. ...
New Zealand Defence Force's failed to clean up properly after itself in Afghanistan - with the result that seven children have been killed and another 10 civilians injured. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Chinese embassy has lashed out at two Liberal members of parliament, Andrew Hastie and James Paterson, saying they would need to “repent and redress their mistakes” before they would be welcome in China. The ...
Tim Costley National’s new candidate in Otaki Local party members have selected Tim Costley as National’s candidate in Ōtaki for the 2020 General Election. Mr Costley is replacing retiring MP Nathan Guy, who is standing down after five terms. ...
“Compelling research out of the UK reaffirms vaping’s life-saving role. Here’s hoping our Government’s pending legislation reflects vaping’s increasingly documented health benefits for smokers,” say Ben Pryor, co-owner of the largest Kiwi-owned ...
Government has announced a raft of changes to the Residential Tenancies Act. The Minister has said he does not want to be seen to unduly punishing landlords. These changes do more than punish landlords however. They will punish anyone living next ...
Democracy under Fire on Firearms Law Reform - COLFO SUNDAY 17 NOVEMBER 2019 The Government supposedly wants to “hear from all New Zealanders” about firearms law reform – unless you happen to be a licenced firearms owner. ...
From Monday 18 November New Zealand women are working for free until the end of the year because of the gender pay imbalance between men and women. ...
Award-winning investigative team Stuff Circuit is releasing its most hard-hitting documentary yet, exposing a secret the NZ Defence Force doesn’t want Kiwis to know. ...
The government has announced a suite of practical changes to the Residential Tenancies Act in its bid to make renting fairer and more secure. Here’s what you need to know. What’s happening?A number of changes to the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) has just been announced by associate minister of housing Kris ...
US Trumpian Inspired Rhetoric From Anti-Trans Group Not a Good Fit with Nz Society Trans-rights support groups around the country have been dismayed by recent divisive and repellent comments by Stand Up For Women (SUFW), a group calling itself feminist ...
Sam Brooks reviews the third season of The Crown, a show that can’t decide whether it wants to humanise the monarchy or tear it all down.This review contains very mild spoilers for world history, 1964-1977.Three seasons in, there’s no doubt that The Crown is the, well, crown jewel in Netflix’s ...
An easy, flavour-packed noodle recipe from Bounty – Cooking With Vegetables, the new cookbook from national food education charity the Garden to Table Trust.The fresh flavours of these noodles are less complex than many Thai dishes, as the simple spice paste uses just a few ingredients. If you’d rather not ...
Part 2: In this excerpt from the evidence of Sir Maarten Wevers in the High Court case of Winston Peters over his superannuation leak, the former head of the Prime Minister's Department explains what ministers should be told by public servants ...
In this excerpt from the evidence of Sir Maarten Wevers in the High Court case of Winston Peters over his superannuation leak, the former head of the Prime Minister's Department summarises our governing arrangements. ...
With the 2020 cannabis referendum fast approaching, New Zealanders have a unique opportunity to let the government know what they want from drug reform. It will then be up to our policy makers to decide whether drug reform will focus on changing outcomes for those struggling under historically racist policy.By ...
It breaks my heart to think of young queer and trans people seeing this sign, and thinking there are no spaces where they will ever belong, writes Hadassah Grace. The first time I ventured into a gay bar, I vowed never to go back.It was a vulnerable time in my life. ...
It breaks my heart to think of young queer and trans people seeing this sign, and thinking there are no spaces where they will ever belong, writes Hadassah Grace. The first time I ventured into a gay bar, I vowed never to go back.It was a vulnerable time in my life. ...
Hayden Donnell looks for inspiration and innovation on how to house the city’s future.Auckland Council’s Unitary Plan has enabled a building boom. More than 14,600 building consents were issued in the city in the year to September. Despite that, houses remain extremely expensive and out-of-reach for many first home buyers. ...
Simon Shepherd: David Seymour's euthanasia bill passed this week, and next week he will be putting the finishing touches on his next bill. Is he just a very hard-working politician or is this the longest one-person election campaign known to mankind? ...
Simon Shepherd: It's Transgender Awareness Week, the same week a feminist group, Speak Up For Women, has brought Megan Murphy from Canada to speak in New Zealand. Murphy is a radical feminist who believes trans women aren't women, views that have ...
As a follow-up to our post about police station office hours for the public and in the cause of balance, we bring positive news – or rather, we are passing on the positive news which the police delivered in a press statement, It’s all about the productivity gains achieved – it ...
Books editor Catherine Woulfe follows Wellington author Lawrence Patchett into his extraordinary story of heat and humanity and history repeating. The Burning River begins like the best kind of yarn. “Someone had been there. Someone strange. In the centre of his camp, a new circle of sooted rocks. A campfire, with ...
SPECIAL REPORT: By Philip Cass in BrisbaneMelanesian Media Freedom Forum – Day two –The second day of the Melanesian Media Freedom Forum began with praise for the work of young Pacific journalists by Professor David Robie and ended with a warning that threats to journalism in the ...
In this special episode of The Real Pod, brought to you by Nando’s, we chat to the champions of My Restaurant Rules NZ 2019.In the afterglow of Rustic Kitchen’s historic win on My Restaurant Rules NZ, Duncan and Alex got on the blower with Tyson and Denise. Then we forgot ...
Hannah Kronast attends a women’s empowerment panel focused on the huge disparities in training and employment within science and technology. In the far back left-hand corner of a women’s equality and empowerment event, a male stuck up his hand. “What can men do to help?” he asked.It was at a panel ...
Our recent Spinoff Art survey provided a snapshot on gender equality in the local art scene, but it wasn’t the full story. Anna Knox continues the conversation by asking some gallery owners and directors for their responses to our findings.The Spinoff’s survey of gender bias in visual arts found that ...
Based on their study of trans wellbeing Aotearoa, the research team at Counting Ourselves find six data points that highlight the strength of our trans and non-binary community.Last month the first comprehensive national survey on transgender health and wellbeing in Aotearoa was published by the academics and researchers at Counting ...
The SpinoffBy Dr Jaimie Veale, Jack Byrne and Ahi Wi-Hongi
Ten thousand years ago, roasted hares and figs were flat-layed on Levantine flax leaves. Now, we drape prosciutto over strawberries on computer desks. Josie Adams mourns the death of the platter.Three days ago I stumbled on an accidental recreation of a 1950s platter: a giant ham, a cake that was ...
India’s decision not to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership promoted by China is politically significant. But its impact on trade and prosperity is more nuanced, as Bloomberg explains.It avoids some market opening on both sides (India to agriculture; others to services) that would have been economically beneficial. But ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra [embedded content]University of Canberra Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Geoff Crisp discusses the the week in politics the government’s response to the bush fires as well as the Emergency Leaders for Climate Action. They also talk about ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The proposed acquisition of infant formula producer Bellamy’s Australia Ltd by China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited has been given approval by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. Strict, legally enforceable conditions, have been set by the treasurer, which ...
The Council of Trade Unions (CTU) is condemning the All Saints Day evening raid on 31 October. With the arrest of over 60 union organisers, human rights defenders and activists in the Philippines province of Negros. The 16th of November is an international ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Assistant professor, University of Canberra What’s happening? Suddenly, at the level of central banks, Australia is regarded as an investment risk. On Wednesday Martin Flodén, the deputy governor of Sweden’s central bank, announced that because Australia and Canada were “not ...
SPECIAL REPORT: By Philip Cass in Brisbane Opening session – Day OneThe problems of operating in the Pacific and the impact of online news and the emergence of ‘citizen journalists’ were common concerns for all delegates to this week’s Melanesian Media Freedom Forum.The forum, held at Griffith ...
Standoff between protesters and the police at Yeung Uk Road, Hong Kong. Image by Studio Incendo – 20190825 Tsuen Wan March. CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=81751531.The recent surge in social protests world-wide is quantitatively and qualitatively different than in previous ages. The advent of individualised mass communications technologies and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Charles Livingstone, Associate Professor, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is going to start asking internet service providers to block certain offshore gambling websites. The decision follows former New South Wales premier ...
The Zero Carbon Act (ZCA) is over a week old, but it’s still being heavily debated and analysed. After all, depending on who you listen to, it’s the most significant new law of the year, of this Government, or even of some people’s lifetime. And it deals with a giant ...
Green MP and refugee Golriz Ghahraman was there last night when the former Manus Island detainee and acclaimed writer arrived in New Zealand.Last night, quietly and without fanfare a small group made up of human rights activists, literary folk, and just two journalists, came together at Auckland Airport to welcome ...
Open mike 26/08/2014 
Open mike is your post.
Next year is an election year, and Labour needs money to fund its campaign. So naturally, they're selling access:Labour is charging wealthy business figures $1500-a-head to lunch with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at its annual conference later this month. [...] On the weekend beginning November 29th, around 800 delegates will ...1 hour ago
Words and images by Jacqui Gibson Gone are Auckland Museum’s days of doing science using a museum-centric academic approach, after Māori land rights holders Ngāti Kuri gave the museum an ultimatum.
MediaWorks announced in October 2019 that it intended to sell off its struggling television business and cancel or cut back on several popular local programmes, including New Zealand Today, Married at First Sight New Zealand and 7 Days. Its radio and outdoor advertising arms are currently performing well, but MediaWorks’ ...8 hours ago
Some readers may remember that I mentioned last year that I was applying for NZ citizenship. I filled out the paperwork and had my original citizenship interview in February. Everything went well until they discovered that, because I had spent five months in the US in 2017, I had not ...1 day ago
by Deirdre O’Neill It is becoming quite acceptable for certain sections of the left to declare that people like me – women who are ‘gender critical’ – should not be allowed in leftist or anarchist spaces. Leaving aside the arrogance and implicit authoritarianism of this claim, its lack of critical ...1 day ago
There is an article in The Conversation, written by Jeremy P. Shapiro (Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University), about what he sees as the psychologically-based underpinnings of three main matters that seem to vex people all around the planet. The article is titled “The Thinking ...2 days ago
. . Blogger Martyn Bradbury has won his case against unreasonable search and surveillance against the NZ Police; and subsequent Police attempts to produce evidence in secrecy, in a closed Court. His case highlights a disturbing growing trend in Aotearoa New Zealand for State power to be used against ...2 days ago
Different Strokes: If a multicultural immigration policy imposes no obligation on immigrant communities to acknowledge and ultimately embrace their host nation’s most cherished traditions and values, then how is that nation to prevent itself from being reduced to a collection of inward-looking and self-replicating ethnic and cultural enclaves?THE COALITION GOVERNMENT’S ...3 days ago
by The Council of Disobedient Women In her excellent oral submission to the Abortion reform select committee on 31st October on behalf of Otago University’s Department of Public Health, historian and public health researcher Hera Cook stated: “We would ask that the committee not use the term ‘pregnant persons’ and ...6 days ago
If FFNZ really put their faith in “Top Medical Journals” they would now be amending their billboards to recognise new research results. Image from FFNZ but updated to agree with the latest research. ... 1 week ago
And to think he gave all the potential goodwill away with that moronic, cult-like statement (repeated ad nauseam by many National hardliners) that Key is quite simply “the greatest PM we ever had”…
Installation complete: this was nothing ... 2 weeks ago
We're setting our young people up for success, investing in education around the country. ...5 hours ago
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First backs the public to decide on the End of Life Choice Bill via a referendum at the 2020 General Election. The Bill, with New Zealand First’s referendum provision incorporated, passed its final reading in Parliament this evening. New Zealand First Spokesperson for ...4 days ago
Fa’atalofa atu, malo e lelei, Kia ora koutou katoa Thank you to the Child Poverty Action Group for asking me to be here today to provide an update on some of the things that have been happening across my the social development portfolio. Can I firstly acknowledge the vast ...1 hour ago
Former prime minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer QC has published two books with Andrew Butler calling for a written, codified constitution that sets out ‘in an accessible form and a single document the fundamental rules and principles under which New Zealand is to be governed’. A road trip and consultation attracted ...18 mins ago
Air New Zealand has cancelled some of its international flights due to ongoing issues with its Rolls-Royce engines. ...45 mins ago
Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.
People with intellectual disabilities and their families are struggling to access support more than ever before, as the disability sector faces a now $574 million annual funding shortfall, says IHC. ...52 mins ago
Air New Zealand has cancelled some of its international flights due to ongoing issues with its Rolls-Royce engines. ...2 hours ago
The Labour-led coalition may have to generate a second wave of Jacindamania if it is to win another term in the Beehive. Re-election is not an impossible dream, despite the failure of Labour to deliver what many of those who voted for it in 2017 expected. Retiring Green MP Gareth Hughes ...2 hours ago
Landlords say they feel under siege with the government planning to make it tougher for them to boot out troublesome tenants; and skilled immigrants waiting for a residents visa say its unfair officials are fast tracking applications for those on salaries over $105,000. ...5 hours ago
Retiring Green MP Gareth Hughes says the pace of change in the current Government is not fast enough for his liking but that is not the reason he is quitting politics. ...5 hours ago
Labour is charging wealthy business figures $1500-a-pop to lunch with Jacinda Ardern; and NZ First-linked forestry company pushed for govt funds. ...6 hours ago
An ambitious new partnership between Sky Sports and more than 50 sports promises more free sport for Kiwis. Suzanne McFadden looks at how it will change the way we see female athletes ...8 hours ago
Catriona MacLennan helped conduct a survey of the top NZ companies to establish the ethnicity of their directors. The results were not surprising, but also far from encouraging. ...8 hours ago
Episode 1 in a series on the trials of injured animals as they’re rescued, rehabilitated and released back into the wild follows the rescue of a yellow-eyed penguin. ...8 hours ago
Steve Braunias reviews the as-told-to book of All Blacks skipper Kieran Read, and fully expects it to suck. ...8 hours ago
New Zealand Defence Force's failed to clean up properly after itself in Afghanistan - with the result that seven children have been killed and another 10 civilians injured. ...9 hours ago
The disastrous impact of banks selling risky financial derivatives to farmers is still being felt in rural communities more than a decade later. ...9 hours ago
Green Party MP Gareth Hughes first entered Parliament in 2010. ...24 hours ago
Many fund managers are overconfident and the public buy the illusion. ...1 day ago
Part 2: In this excerpt from the evidence of Sir Maarten Wevers in the High Court case of Winston Peters over his superannuation leak, the former head of the Prime Minister's Department explains what ministers should be told by public servants ...1 day ago
In this excerpt from the evidence of Sir Maarten Wevers in the High Court case of Winston Peters over his superannuation leak, the former head of the Prime Minister's Department summarises our governing arrangements. ...1 day ago
New Zealand's coroners learnt lessons of cultural competency and communication from March 15. ...1 day ago
As a follow-up to our post about police station office hours for the public and in the cause of balance, we bring positive news – or rather, we are passing on the positive news which the police delivered in a press statement, It’s all about the productivity gains achieved – it ...2 days ago
"I rang the ambulance service then went to the shed": a new short story by a master of the form, Oamaru writer Owen Marshall. ...2 days ago
India’s decision not to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership promoted by China is politically significant. But its impact on trade and prosperity is more nuanced, as Bloomberg explains. It avoids some market opening on both sides (India to agriculture; others to services) that would have been economically beneficial. But ...3 days ago
Bring it on soldier !
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11314137
“Mr Mitchell said the narrative in Dirty Politics was completely false, and he was considering legal action”.
Not a PS Staffer 9.3
26 October 2013 at 11:06 am
Mark Mitchell, MP for North Shore, is a former NZ Policeman who..
“launched an international business career which included the start-up of my own company specialising in hostage rescue, supply chain security and risk management. Working closely with the World Economic Forum, I helped to establish Logistic Emergency Response Teams…. ”
see http://www.markmitchell.co.nz/mark-mitchell-profile.html
Mitchell’s father-in-law Frank Gill was a National Party North Shore MP as well as being a minister and ambasador to Washington.
Mitchell is a well integrated into the National Party real power structures. Mitchell is also well integrated into the Special Services network, the Police and the Intelligence Services.
Mark Mitchell knew about the Len Brown affair because there was a professional project to displace Len that went beyond the Palino/Slater/Wewege amateurs.
Mark Mitchell’s father in law was a leery leech! Followed me around the Debating Chamber gallery many years ago. I was not impressed. Insisted on being called Air Commodore Gill. Struck me as lacking in any intellectual skills. Sounds like Mark Mitchell would have been a fine fit with his father-in-law.
I believe in Wellington they called the father in law , ‘Air corridor Gill’ aptly.
They did, and for good reason
Gill was unofficial leader of the morally conservative wing of the party during the Muldoon years.
Somebody should explain to him what discovery is
Beautiful Pete ! Mitchell probably reads “Discovery” as some sort of Remuera tractor.
Mitchell won’t sue Hager. This is just pre-relection deflection. There is nothing stopping him telling his lawyers to get cracking on it right now if he was serious. He is not serious, and like with Collins, this case will not see court.
There will, I suspect, be other cases that do see court. But not this one.
Hager has been careful to state things like
The emails show… And then tells you what the emails said.
u
As a staunch supporter of the Left, I am becoming increasingly concerned about the dangerous gaps in policy.
Last night I didn’t sleep a wink. Not one party I could call as being from the political Left (Parties that truly care what happens to people) had any mention of one of the most important details of Health and economic development policy on their websites. Over on the Right party sites, they are neck deep in satirical logical fallacies, it’s easy to tell what they really mean, but on the Left, nothing. How would a left coalition government help those in need of Cognitive Dissonance? It’s not 1968 anymore, telling people you’ll do your best if nothing comes up and to put their trust in Good Faith just doesn’t cut it.
You know what happened the other day? I went to find my car and there was this awful stink. It was so bad I thought I’d run over a hedgehog on the way into work. You know what it was? One of those Street Lifestylers wedged between my front bumper and the pipes running along the wall of the building. It was trying to keep warm no doubt. Well someone paid for that heat and he stole it. Why don’t they just hang out in cafes like everyone else if he’s that bad off. God, I hate people who don’t do what’s right. Had to get the parking attendant to roll it away. Reality is becoming so much more difficult to ignore under successive governments and ignoring my growing unease just isn’t on. The next Left government really needs to act.
Awful interview by Espiner on RNZ.
Proof the media will not discuss policies and usual wants to talk polls etc….
Now we’ve read Dirty Politics, we know the agenda.
Yep a shocker.
My only hope now – personal stuff from WhaleDump. The fight has to get dirty to drag them back in.
I just don’t know if personal stuff will have impact, or if it devalues the whole project. Hager’s been very careful to stick to the issues which show how the right has been manipulating the media and attacking its opponents, and we’ve already seen blowback like “well aren’t you doing exactly the same thing using hacked emails.”
If it gets personal it’s much, much easier for the right to brush it off by saying “see, the left are just as bad, this is politics as normal.”
given the nats current penchant for using tobacco companies to train some of its young candidates, whaledump on carrick gragam and slater might be edifying for some
@ tigger..
..i am wanting to see the extent/depth of the links with mainstream media..
..i intend to ask hager about that at his public meeting on wed nite..
(the other dump i want to see is the slater/ede one..
..that’s where it gets taken directly to key..)
Unbelievable! This no doubt was his attempt at “balance” after the roasting he gave the PM a week or so ago. But shouting 25% six times in a minute, and saying things like “I put it to you that nobody like you” is not the stuff of tough interviews – it is just a shallow and silly attack.
It’s a gotcha question. If Cunliffe answered “Sure, lots of people like me” he’d sound full of himself, if he said “Not enough like me” he’d sound hopeless. It’s like asking when someone stopped beating their wife.
I’m pretty sure that Espiner knows exactly what a loaded question is.
did he ask key if he was lying in 2011 or last week?
Espiner might but you certainly don’t Draco
I heard that also, quite disgusting. Espiner needs to be looking for another job. Something more suited to his abilities.
He has abilities????
I did think he could clean toilets but nah, that is an honest job – he wouldn’t be qualified.
Lots and lots of news articles on The Book today including these two
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/10417726/The-hacker-revealed
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/aug/25/dirty-politics-new-zealands-own-house-of-cards-is-collapsing
Thanks for the Guardian link. Interesting that the author says it has exposed in NZ, the way politics and the media play out across many countries.
QFT
And that, to, is something that the National Party and their sycophants don’t want people to consider. It’s why they parrot the line that things were stolen which is just more of the manipulation that Dirty Politics shows so well.
plus one
Author of the Guardian article is Antony Loewenstein – one of the Australian Jewish community’s leading and most trenchant critics of Israel. Wrote My Israel Question (an excellent analysis of, amongst other things, the Zionist/”Pro”-Israeli excesses of sections of the Aussie Jewish community – particularly its lobby-groups) and co-founded Independent Australian Jewish Voices. He’s paid a substantial personal price over the years for his courage and integrity.
+100…these decent people give us hope for humanity
Awww .. thx, the Stuff link has excellent info about Whaledump. So Rawshark it is then, and our hacker does seem to be a man. Interesting comment that his motive, when fully understood, will point directly at him, and only him.
It’s a must read for many here.
But OUCH ! comment from someone under the Guardian article ..
‘NZ is the new Uruguay – a once prosperous nation now increasingly a relatively impoverished but scenic backwater’ .
Yes Awww Thanks for the Guardian link. The writer says that the dirty tricks happen all round the world and this expose is very timely. Niky has reached the World. And John Key has plummeted to the bowels of the World.
Mother of dead west coaster Slater defamed said it was most likely one of his friends was most likely the hacker!
And she was going to sue Camoron Slater!
Any legal action against Slater is cause for celebration!
+100
Sue him for what?
Defamation hope his 3rd strike earns him some time behind bars!
For the 2x convicted crim!
Sorry but that wouldn’t run. At Common Law you can’t defame the dead as reputation is a personal right which can only be defended in person.
Didn’t he also abuse her?
…
All I’m aware of is the ‘feral’ comment about the dead man which has been reported in the press. I haven’t looked at Slater’s original remarks as I’d rather sort through used lavatory paper looking for re-usable sheets.
I’d think it unlikely, though. Establishing defamation is a pretty high bar. Frankly I doubt even Slater’s comment about Judd Hall as ‘feral’ would be legally defamatory in the way that, say, calling him a fraudster or paedophile would be.
Some folk might even regard it as complimentary.
(Sorry, reply to tricledrown below.)
“Some folk might even regard it as complimentary”
The woman herself, in the morning report interview said as much about the phrase “feral” and said that a lot of people on the coast were quite happy with such a description. I’m not sure whether she specifically included herself in the group but she didn’t seem to find it offensive.
Surprised me. I would have found it so.
Vinscreen Viper is their anything Slater can be charged with!
Now Key Can’t call this a left wing conspiracy theory anymore!
There was some speculation amongst a few of us last week about the identity of the hacker and thought it may be a classmate, friend or partner of Judd Hall’s – remember Nicky Hager said the motivation for the hacking wasn’t political.
Jo(e?) Hall, Judd’s Mum , said she hoped that Key would apologise for his connection with Slater when he visited the West Coast today. I think she might be mistaken, assuming that Key has some scruples.
Here’s the thing West Coast Tasman voters. In 2011 you gave your party vote to National, with National receiving the highest amount of party votes. On 20th September turn your backs on this party that has done nothing for you and whose leader stood by the one who mocked the death of one of your sons.
Make “zero party votes for National” your goal in 2014.
+100
Lest we forget, what this present NatACT government has done to us!!!
While much attention has recently been given to the nasty “black ops” activities by a blogger by the name of Cameron Slater (aka “Whaleoil”) and certain senior staff in the Prime Minister’s Office, same as by Judith Collins and a few others, we must not forget what else happened over recent years, and for what Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has been responsible for. Here is a selection of news and other sources re her nasty “welfare reforms” and her own hypocrisy:
“Why Paula Bennett Is Not Fit To Be A Minister”, BE Media, 29 July 2009
http://brianedwardsmedia.co.nz/2009/07/why-paula-bennett-is-not-fit-to-be-a-minister/
“Some welfare reforms do breach rights, says Bennett”, NZ Herald, 25 March 2010:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10634153
“Social Development Minister Paula Bennett admits that part of her welfare reforms breach the Bill of Rights Act but says it would not bother most people.” “And Attorney-General Chris Finlayson denies he deliberately withheld his report advising that part of the Government’s welfare plans breach the Bill of Rights Act. He puts the delay in its presentation to Parliament as an “administrative error”.”
“Human Rights Commission comes out against Paula Bennett..”, Tumeke, 20 May 2010
http://tumeke.blogspot.co.nz/2010/05/human-rights-commission-comes-out.html
“OPEN LETTER TO: Hon Paula Bennett, Minister Of Social Development and Peseta-Sam Lotu-Liga”, CPAG, 12 April 2012
http://www.cpag.org.nz/news/open-letter-to-paula-bennett-peseta-sam-lotu/
Paula Bennett on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paula_Bennett
“In July 2009, Bennett released the benefit details of two beneficiaries, Natasha Fuller and Jennifer Johnston, who had criticised the Government’s policy of getting rid of the Training Initiative Allowance (TIA). She said she believed she had “implied consent” for the release of the information.” “There has also been considerable criticism of Bennett for abolishing the TIA. Both Fuller and Labour MP Charles Chauvel said that they would make complaints to the privacy commissioner and Schroff, respectively.”
“The Privacy Commission investigated Bennett’s actions after receiving a complaint. In late 2010, Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff closed her investigation into the privacy complaint and referred the matter to the Director of Human Rights Proceedings for the Human Rights Commission, Robert Hesketh. On 15 August 2012, Hesketh announced the resolution of the complaint under the Privacy Act against Bennett, saying, “On the basis of the Minister’s letter to me, I have agreed to close my file. The matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties.”[30] In her letter to Hesketh, Bennett wrote: “I have on previous occasions expressed to you through my counsel and to Ms Fuller, when I met with her in person, my regret at the personal cost that this incident has caused Ms Fuller. The purpose of this letter is to formally convey that.”
“As you know, I took the view that it was appropriate for me to respond to some of Ms Fuller’s comments in order to provide what I considered to be information relevant to the public debate that was taking place at the time. I acknowledge that you consider that I was wrong to do so and that this resulted in a breach of Ms Fuller’s privacy.” “As you also know, I do not accept that view.”
Other reports:
“The Achilles Heel of National’s welfare reforms”, CPAG, 02 March 2012
http://www.cpag.org.nz/topics/social-security/
“Welfare group warns thousands will suffer after changes”, NZ Herald, 15 July 2013
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10898243
“Welfare now has health warning”, NZ Herald, 16 July 2013
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10898616
“Job hunting replaces focus on welfare benefits”, NZ Herald, 16 July 2013
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10898601
“Welfare Reform – New Zealand Association of Social Workers”, 19 July 2013
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1307/S00237/welfare-reform-new-zealand-association-of-social-workers.htm
Some of the results we know about:
“Record numbers struggling to make ends meet”, 04 Nov. 2013
http://www.gisborneherald.co.nz/article/?id=34699
“Don’t copy our welfare cuts, New Zealand experts warn Australia”, The Guardian, 03 June 2014
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/03/dont-copy-our-welfare-cuts-new-zealand-experts-warn-australia
“How is Government evaluating its welfare reforms, and why aren’t we allowed to know?”, M. Fletcher, Public Address, 29 June 2014
http://publicaddress.net/speaker/how-is-government-evaluating-its-welfare/
VOTE WISELY on 20 September 2014!
@ xtasy….which Left party are you voting for ?…and why?…because this may affect my vote ie I may vote the way you suggest
Chooky, I am most likely to give the Greens my party vote, although I cannot agree with some of their policies. They do though seem to offer the best deal to those dependent on WINZ, and actually want to bring in a kind of universal basic income, by replacing the present Social Security Act with new law. That basic income would be topped up, and it seems they are prepared to ensure people get enough to live from, whether they care for children, are disabled, studying or whatever else.
See their policy:
https://home.greens.org.nz/
https://home.greens.org.nz/policy/income-support-policy
https://home.greens.org.nz/policylist
https://home.greens.org.nz/policysummary/disability-policy-summary
Like with all parties, they list much aspirational stuff, but I trust them more than Labour, certainly when it comes to social security. Question will be how much they can push for when negotiating with Labour to form a government, but I have reservations re Internet Mana, as they will most likely not be such an important player, and may not even be needed for a government. Also I have some concerns about Dotcom’s involvement, and how many in the public perceive them.
Labour have got some interesting social policy too now, but they really do much more for those able to work, and in some ways they seem only moderately caring for the unemployed sick and disabled. Work is their mantra for many social ills, a bit like the National Party, just not as unfair and harsh.
But take a look at all left of centre parties’ policies, I just stated my thoughts.
@xtasy…thanks!….that is good to hear about the Greens because i was going to Party vote for them anyway …you just confirm my intended vote ..I have a brother with a handicap and who is on a disability benefit….so i will make sure that he knows your arguments and research too… Generally he votes Labour…but he may like to consider the Greens this time.
Maybe you could turn this into a Post?….so a lot more people get to see your research, arguments and hear your perspective on this very important party policy issue.
I am not going to turn stuff into a post, although this “comment” above is the size of one. Over the coming days and weeks I will present a bit more of stuff that I have saved, that I can find by Google search, and that will remind people of what the Nats under Key and Bennett have done to harm and harass so many.
I will also endeavour to present a bit more on Dr Bratt and so forth. A few good comments on Open Mike will be read by many, I am sure.
well i think many beneficiaries and those who support them do need some guidance on which parties have the BEST policies for them and why….or at least a personal perspective from the coal face to spark off their thinking on which party to vote for
….you could always maybe circulate it in a post on the Daily Blog as well?
Just placed a reserve on Dirty Politics at the library. I am number 63 in the queue and there are 10 copies available for loan….so much for the public not being interested.
I ordered it from my library and was no. 320 in the queue. Let’s hope a lot of undecided voters read the book and vote accordingly.
you can maybe ask on here for a loan copy from someone .. I can’t help as I have the kindle version on my computer. but asking is worth a try. (And to maintain mutual anonymity, make a new gmail account and post it for someone to contact you. I did it when book first came out, and had it all arranged .. but then ebook was available.)
#320 is a long way down and the election is close !
Good idea yeshe. We could have a Standardista Dirty Politics library. I’m in Wellington and more than happy to lend my copy. This book is essential reading for all NZer’s of any political colour. (principled National voters would be disgusted at the depths their party has sunk to)
I can’t afford to buy books these days (my days collecting of books came to an abrupt end when financial circumstances changed!) but used the grocery money to get my copy. Well worth having baked beans on toast two meals in a row as a consequence!
😀 @rosie
and did you see the Stuff link at #5 ? most interesting indeed from the whaledump hacker.
Yes! Rawshark! So just playing catch up, the hacker and whaledump are the same person?
Great Guardian article too, from Awww’s link.
maybe not the same person, but same intent !! And more ….
I see the Pike River families are planning a silent protest at Key this afternoon with Jo Hall ( Judd’s mother) hopeful of an apology from Key .. well, at least she’s going to make it plain it is what she expects.
(oops .. just saw your previous post on same subject, sorry)
Happy to loan out my copy too.
Any thoughts how we could make this work? I am in Wellington.
Anyone who would like to read it, message me and maybe we can arrange a meeting point.
What I did last week — I created a new gmail account, with a family name .. then I posted that email addy on here for the poster to contact me, which he did. I don’t know if his name was real or not ! Good luck …
How about creating Standardista Virtual Library Hubs? That way we can get copies to each other, and save money by minimising on the postage.
yes it was
😀 thanks again …
I’d suggest, if it were ok with Lynn, that if a person requested to borrow a book, that Lynn could forward the “issuer’s” email address to the “borrower”. This would perhaps mean there would a be a list on this site with commenters/issuers and their areas, that borrowers could select from. Borrower x see’s that issuer y in Tauranga has a copy of The Book they can lend. They get in touch via email and arrange collection or postage.
There needs to be an element of trust in doing this, but I feel more comfortable with option than yeshe’s one below. (Could you get spammed by crazies?)
Depends on whether Lynn and or authors have the time to muck around supplying emails.
There is a problem with the privacy policy. I will have a look around for a private messaging facility for the site.
Oh yes, I see. Thank you.
much better than my idea which worked solely as a one off ! Thanks Lynn.
or you could just strip out the DRM form a purchased copy from amazon and share that, takes less than 3 minutes to do. After all, information should be free and copyright is an outdated concept enforced by the fascist lackeys of corporates. If it wasn’t against the law (and I respect the property rights of the Standard), I’d a post a link to it here. Wouldn’t surprise me however if its not already on Mega.
nadis, nadis, nadis. oh dear.
“or you could just strip out the DRM form a purchased copy from amazon and share that, takes less than 3 minutes to do.”
How? I had a look online simply so I could open the book in something other than kindle which doesn’t support page numbering (doh!). The couple of online and download apps I tried couldn’t rip the book.
I have a copy for loan
I have said I would never again post on TS, but in this case, I’m willing to make an exception. I will lend my copy. Contact me at “borrowdp [at] hmamail.com”
Maybe you can borrow key’s copy?
well it would be brand new and untouched by human hand !!
How long does your library loan books for? I would assume that it is a week so only 3 more people will get each book before the election.
I imagine the number on the list will go to zero on 21 September.
Didn’t hear it but heard my husband abusing the radio when he heard it. Didn’t blame him when he told me about guyons incisive, in depth interview of Cumliffe. I think DC should just send ‘The Office’ next time. Trying to get a decent interview from guyon is just a waste of time for David. Who says to ANYONE “I put it to you that nobody likes you” Well guyon, you are universally disliked , you could be better but you choose daily to show yourself up as a biased, boring lazy interviewer. And your voice is barely distinguishable from Susie’s
Nothing terribly surprises me anymore, but I have to admit that the NZ Herald is challenging that.
Today in the Herald there’s two puff pieces on National and none on Labour. Worse we get this in one of the puff pieces on National;
That’s the bit that everybody sees on the website.
The other puff piece, and the bit that everybody sees is;
Labour’s budget is presented as an ‘alternative’ budget.
There’s a story in the Money section titled;
I cannot see how it is possible to maintain a democracy under these conditions.
“I cannot see how it is possible to maintain a democracy under these conditions.”
Only the illusion of democracy remains, soon as you understand that it makes sense.
+1
The 4th Labour government sold our democracy out to neo-liberalism and a return to feudalism.
Modern democracy,is just the freedom to do as you are told.re read (Secrets,Lies and Democracy)Noam Chomsky
I’ll loan a copy to the standard library.
do i have to say/point out again what a rightwing-toad/dweeb rawdon christie is..?
Rawdie’s bloody thick as well. Just not up to it. Watch the uneasy pause, the shamble, the momentary ‘just sucked a lemon’ mouth when he gets a challenging response to whatever facile question/assertion he’s put/made.
Followed by eyes averted, semi-smile recovery. “W-e-e-l-l-l-l……nevertheless……”
he’s like that person who stands right behind the bully…
..remove the bully..he squeals and runs away…
Anyone catch that clip on telly this weekend where Slater said he would be involved in politics long after Key had left the scene?
And in a moment of supreme zen weirdness he said he had “met and dealt with” every PM from Muldoon onward?
How old is he? 40? If so, he reckons he was dealing with Muldoon when he was 10, and with Lange when he was 11. And he goes on telly and squints into the camera and says this as if it’s real.
Jesus, this is the fucking spoon Key got to help him run the country.
Slater is 43.
Some bold claims there at the link. Well, I guess he never had to put them into practice because he wasn’t voted in.
Bit rich, eh? Lied about his address, too.
“And in a moment of supreme zen weirdness he said he had “met and dealt with” every PM from Muldoon onward?”
He may not referring to dealing PM’s while they were still in office. Which would still probably discount Muldoon.
I don’t doubt that a few important figures patted him on the head as a child, but “dealt with”, that’s just lolzworthy.
He deals with Key. We know this to be true.
I suspect he has had dealings with Shipley, as she is an important part of the cartel that Key and Collins are involved in. All post-PM though.
I can’t think of any other PM who would be likely to give him the time of day, in or out of office.
Remember his father was the president of the National party for years so dinner party’s bbq’s etc no doubt Camoron would have met and been influenced by National Party insiders he is a credit to all of them!
Prior to becoming the Nat Party president, he was the chairman of the all important Auckland National Division going back to the 1970s. Wee Cameron would have been the recipient of a lot of head patting from National Party senior figures as he grew up. Perhaps his head sustained a bit of damage in the process.
Doesn’t take Guyon long to revert to type, viz. snooty little clipped-tones toff, barely suppressing the alter ego of ‘Headmaster GodKey’ sans smirk lurking within. Michelle-Boag-on-steroids Ferguson equally unfit for RNZ Morning Report.
How unartful are these media lads and lassies when the only route to the guts of matters is their anger at being personally affronted ? As for example the “Is it OK ?” episode Guyon with TheGodKey last week.
no, Guyon is not ok, ever
never has been..
Still had my heart thumping that did. Is it ok? Is it ok? Is it ok?
25% 25% 25% 25% – not so much
An outstanding blog by Giovanni Tiso this morning.
I would have left a message congratulating him, but couldn’t figure out the new comments configuration on his site. So I’ll say it here: Bravo!
http://bat-bean-beam.blogspot.co.nz/2014/08/the-jane-clifton-continuum.html
really..?..he is a defender of josie pagani..?
..you like that..?
Read it again.
no thanks..
You should.
/
Posted by Giovanni Tiso at 11:59 PM ShareThis
Labels: Interpolations, satire
Yes – quite subtle satire at that.
(Will confess to having to read it several times …)
Just shows how inured we are to these kinds of arguments.
My particular bugbear is the false equivalence arguments where some nobody getting kicked unconscious in a gutter equals one Person Who Matters feeling insulted by a criticism about their behaviour. And we see these kinds of false equivalences and unequal treatment according to status all the time in the media because the bias it reflects is so ingrained – in a large part by the media itself in an obscene vicious circle with public opinion.
A beneficiary is vilified for not being able to make ends meet on a benefit set at a rate which makes doing so impossible, while in the same issue of the paper a Remuera couple who lost money in a collapsed finance company gets a sympathy piece and their “give a little” page which is up to $50,000 of donations is advertised because they might have to sell their house and buy something more affordable.
And who has been deliberately creating and maintaining these circles?
I agree, and this election has shown up the assumptions associated with inequality like no other. A National Party ad that verges on self parody, and could almost double as an ad for a posh private school. The hounding and demeaning of every representative on the left, while the PM, who really is accountable, is allowed to alter the meaning of words, and refuse to answer questions with impunity. Debate seems to have descended to the level of sixth form bitchery with the “aspirational” dominating the common room and the remainder cast as flea-bags. I am all but waiting for some lip-glossed, right leaning, TV presenter to shout, “You can’t say that to me, because I’m a TV presenter and I’m beautiful!”
Most complete sardonic riff I’ve seen since dealing with a teenage daughter.
Excellent work Tiso.
just found this…it is very cool..!
..a simple online way to make yr own gifs..
..you just have to upload a pic..
..i am looking forward to some good key/slater ones from you all..
http://www.wired.com/2014/08/revist-link/
Dame Anne Salmond: Royal commission of inquiry needed to clean up NZ’s dirty politics.
.
The Dirty Politics saga cuts to the heart of political life in New Zealand. Over the past 10 years there has been an insidious shift in the way that government works, with increasingly autocratic, arrogant ministers taking away the levers of power from citizens and civil servants.
The independence of the civil service has been eroded, with ministers routinely interfering in operational decisions. Last year, the Law Society felt impelled to report to the United Nations that Parliament had been used to pass a succession of acts that strip away rights, freedoms and protections from citizens, in breach of the Bill of Rights. Ministerial accountability has become a farce.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11314367
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/60852283/French-government-resigns-PM-to-form-new-government
Centrist? Has the election already happened and Key been turfed out while I was in the shower?
You seem to have fallen for Whalesludge’s spin Puckish.
Oh please Keys center right at best (Labour-lite at worst)
Key is radical RWJN and what he really wants is a return to feudalism as proven by his sales of our assets against our will.
Lets see, John Key didn’t sell any assets as the controlling share is still held by the government whereas Labour sold 100% of the assets (and also a lot more then National ever did)
National strengthened the overseas investment rules (which were woeful under Labour) and yes more land was sold under Labour then has been sold under National
Also hes stated no more asset sales this term, its still legal to join a union and promoting free healthcare to under 13s
Yes hes a RWNJ and wants us to return to feudalism
Dear DTB and labour are going to sell housing nz land as part of kiwibuild. Funny how it is ok to sell nz state assets when we do it. A great opportunity lost as the land could be better used IMHO for new state houses. Then we have today in the herald 40m2 houses on 119m2 sections at a bargin $339k , is this what affordable housing has become we the voter should be demanding that state land esp within Auckland be used to build state houses, and also help to reduce the govt housing subsidy paid to land lords.
I don’t think it’s OK at all. I’m not impressed one bit by Labour’s housing policy. We need more state houses, and for many reasons. A good building program would provide training, employment, push prices down and have a follow on effect on private rents.
PR can’t tell what is right or wrong any more Bearded Git. He just makes assumptions and expects people to worship him.
Just capitalism, in general, collapsing.
And in a few weeks we’ll be able to say See, another conservative government down the toilet.
And Dirty Politics continues to erode National’s credibility here:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11314137
More than a third of voters may change their vote over Dirty Politics. Game changer.
“The shadow of ‘Dirty Politics’ still hangs over the campaign. John Key is not answering questions about the book on the trail anymore. He is trying to draw a line under it in the hope it has not damaged his and National’s position too badly. National’s internal polling is said to show the book’s revelations are not resonating with the public.
However, TVNZ’s Vote Compass survey found the book had affected 36% of the 13,913 voters who took the online poll, who said it may change their vote to varying degrees”
And on another issue National is on the wrong side of:
“A 3News Reid Research poll released last night showed 77% of voters believed there should be stricter controls on foreign ownership and 20% said there should not be stricter controls”
Read about both issues here:
http://www.interest.co.nz/news/71637/poll-shows-most-want-foreign-buying-limits-survey-finds-over-third-say-dirty-politics-wil
my favourite from the link .. thx BG .. good to be reminded this is all we need …
“The knife-edge nature of the electoral mathematics of MMP mean a loss of 2-3% support from National would be enough to put its re-election in doubt, and it is already going into the election with opinion poll support around 2-3% lower than in the lead-up to the 2011 election, which it won by less than 10,000 votes.”
And what a bloody costly 10,000 votes.
Key cannot blame it on left wing conspiracy theorists any more!
Cameron Slater and Conman Key have to take Personal Responsibility for their self made mess!
Key can’t even blame dotcom!
Key is now trying to mumble his way round the massive mess of his own creation!
Key sounds like a lying little school boy!
I see DPF is having a wee cry about nasty song written about his idol.
Diddums.
If you declare a war on the poor this is what you should expect to receive.
Which particular song? There’s quite a few anti Key songs!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10422676/Song-threatens-to-kill-Key
Whoa! Didn’t know this one. There’s no mincing of words there. A bit edgy, I must admit but then again they weren’t” listened to” in 2011 (Listen to us) so the resentment edged up another notch. What does Farrar expect, the boys choir praising Key?
Excellent bass line. Quite uncomfortable with the threatening reference to fucking Key’s daughter though.
http://www.undertheradar.co.nz/news/8630/Listen-Peace—Kill-The-PM.utr
Does that mean you are comfortable with the threatening reference to killing him? Political leanings aside, surely this is nothing but unacceptable?
It’s a bit shocking Peter but then again a) it’s not going to happen b)I’ve listened to music all my life so am familiar with violent anti authority expressions and c) this view sums up my sentiments perfectly:
“………….. I don’t have to like it. I understand why its happening. When your suppress people and their voice it breaks through and it is not pretty as it would have been if you let them have a say in the first place.”
My main concern is with Key’s daughter being threatened. She has nothing to do with the running of the country and the threat sounds rather rapey to me. Myself I don’t like or dislike the lyrics (but like the melody) but I wouldn’t play it when people are around at my house, even guests that feel just as angry towards Key as @peace do.
I’ve listened a few times, and I agree Rosie that bit about Key’s daughter shocked me. Then listening through a few times, I think it’s a bragging attempt, and a pick up line – sad I know. It’s not that unusual for hip-hop artist – to do these brags. I think they deliberately made this section of the song shocking, but he does a vocal twist at end – to introduce himself and make it apparent who he talking to.
That said, they use shock a lot in their songs, and sexist language. Here for the other tunes.
http://www.atpeace.co.nz/#hear
@peace comment on Facebook.
*Now that I have your attention, may I remind you that
130,000 ELIGIBLE PEOPLE UNDER 25 HAVE NOT YET ENROLLED.
The current PM does not care about these people. He does not care about the growing gap between the rich and the poor in our country. He does not care about the native people of our country. He does not care about the planet we depend upon to survive, the living organism that we as humans are a functioning part of. He does not care about the right we should all have to an education. He only cares about him and his friends.
I do not want to literally kill this man. I do not wish to have sexual relations with anybody related to him. Let’s not pretend a silly little song ever changed anything. Last I seen famine was still going pretty strong since ‘Heal The World’ came out. It’s just a song. No different from Thatcher era punk. Anyone ever heard “Maggie you’re a cunt”..?
What’s important is that we ENROL TO VOTE so that we have a chance to select someone to represent us who understands the concept of empathy.
I’m fed up with this dude. But if you want to vote for him, that’s your choice. Personally, I’m voting Greens but you can vote for whoever you like. You can choose between a whole bunch of different people who represent a whole bunch of different ideologies. That’s the beauty of the political system in NZ.
Please respect my right to express my disappointment for the leader of our country.*
Read more: http://www.undertheradar.co.nz/news/8630/Listen-Peace—Kill-The-PM.utr#ixzz3BSbNh9A2
Thats a well written statement. Clarifies the violent intent (none) and expands on the message.
I get what you’re saying adam re the boasting/ bragging and have heard it plenty of times in songs. Get’s a bit eye rolly though, as a woman hearing it. Thanks for sharing other tunes. I’ve made a mental note to have a listen when I get a chance.
Amazing what you can convince yourself of when you really, really want to
🙄
“If you declare a war on the poor this is what you should expect to receive.”
If I poke you in the eye repeatedly for 6 years then yeah I will expect you to turn around and say something nasty to me
[deleted]
[lprent: Too far. Read the policy again. ]
?
Why too far? It was just a metaphor for what I think Laila Harre’s policies will do to my small business.
Will you also delete any links on this site to the song? Or can I put a link here to the comment I have made hosted elsewhere?
I run a small business and none of the IMP policies worry me at all. I’m more worried about the mismanagement by national and the old boys clubs with infest national, and some could say labour.
This is not capitalism, in capitalism you got to take the hits and gains. The highs and the lows. This is profit taking and a mad rush to get the last of the resources.
Ditto. I don’t know why any small business owner would ever vote for National and that includes any family farmers that may be left.
Yep. It seems the Left have a bit of impression management and communication to the small business sector catch up with. Policies which make the life of small business owners simpler and give our customers more disposable income is all good for SMEs.
Because more then likely the Greens would come in as well and the Greens are wanting to implement more costs over water rights so why would farmers vote for more costs?
Why would we vote to subsidise the costs that the farmers incur?
Not the question asked
PR you bugger all/never answer questions – so it’s a bit rich for you to say that.
I don’t think it’s really helpful to label all farmers along those lines.
PR
Current debt
86,024,914,094
Current Interest bill (@2%)
1,720,497,995
Because they keep going on about user pays and personal responsibility.
Unless you’re accusing them of being hypocrites that is.
The Greens need to be listened to along with everyone else. They after all represent a larger % of the electorate than National do.
Interesting From NBR
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/assange-help-dotcom-drop-his-sept-15-bombshell-key-ck-161400
Kim Dotcom has told OneNews the big international name who will play a role in the bombshell he’ll drop on the prime minister: WikiLeaks founder and fugitive Julian Assange, who’s holed up in Ecuador’s London embassy, is set to take part in a pre-election attack on John Key.
“I can give you a hint. Someone who is currently locked up in an embassy might be on a live video link,” Mr Dotcom said.
Mr Dotcom had warned something big will come out on September 15, just five days from the election.
He has already hired journalist Glen Greenwald, who made public the Edward Snowdon leaks. Now the addition of Mr Assange confirms the September 15 event will be about New Zealand’s spying.
Asked will September 15 do more damage to Mr Key than the Dirty Politics book has, Mr Dotcom told OneNews: “I think so.”
Nice post dv. Well this and Dirty Politics (see my post above) should see Key spending much more time at his Hawaii mansion in the near future.
I’d prefer if we organised his accommodation.
And perhaps a direct message will be read out from Edward Snowden?
lol, at Her Majesty’s pleasure
KDC said that thing during the IMP launch about how he didn’t like the German PM so hacked his credit rating to zero, and there is another PM he doesn’t like. Makes me uncomfortable, when he talks about what he wants and likes etc, instead of talking about the general good. Still too much ego and I’m just glad he’s not gunning for someone on the left (this could just as easily be about a Labour govt as a NACT one).
While I understand how KDC’s actions fall outside of healthy political action – it’s also why IMP is the dark horse in this election.
Increasingly young people are no longer interested in conventionally sanctioned political actions. They increasingly see the entire system as compromised at best – irredeemably corrupted at worst.
For them this kind of direct action, redolent of the “V” and “Anonymous” memes, holds far more appeal.
Agreed, IMP are effective in what they do. I think I will just keep expressing my discomfit about KDC himself, because as bad as things are now we still have many good things to lose.
Am also getting sick of the whole “we’re fucked” as youth slogan thing. We do have choices, and more choices this election than ever. I really wish people would get over the idea that voting is about getting what one wants. It’s not, it’s about moving us towards a better place, or even just a place where it’s easier to do the real work of effecting change. I’ve never been able to vote for a party that represents me well, but that hasn’t stopped me from seeing the value in voting. All power to IMP, I hope they do really well, but I still think that we should be encouraging people to vote because it’s a form of power irrespective of whether there is a cool party to vote for or not (and it’s not like back in the FPP dark ages when I would have had to be voting Labour at this point 😉
Yeah – and it’s worth keeping in mind that a lot of real change comes from radicals outside of the system who over time learn to work effectively within it.
On the other hand the “we’re fucked” thing will need to find a legitimate political outlet sooner or later. Preferably sooner – and if KDC is the vehicle then so be it. No-one else seems to have put their hand up.
or alternatively, pressure from radicals and mass movements which choose to never compromise sufficiently to become part of the establishment – but who by doing so effectively force those within the establishment to take those radical viewpoints into account. A historical example of this was FDR’s New Deal. Without massive pressure from workers and socialist movements – including riots and dozens of strikers killed – FDR would never have passed the New Deal. As a conciliatory figure trying to protect the future of capitalism, he had to.
Update on TPPA meetings through the country … so vital to our survival.
http://us4.campaign-archive1.com/?u=2af728ed394d2e3c92f383cd5&id=9a51057c49&e=0663fc3518
Thanks. This deserves a post of its own asap to let many others know.
@LPrent please ? thx
Can include also the fact that TPPA is another attempt at resurrecting the MAI that was roundly rejected back in 1998. Laila Harre has pointed out to the role of online opposition in defeating the MAI and we can do it again [on video online that I viewed recently and I would be happy if someone can find it].
Worth referring to Bryan Gould’s piece in December last year which refers to the MAI-TPPA connection:
“Speak up – we can resist the powerful”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11167682
And this from:
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/33828/resisting-multilateralism
“Part of a protest march moves through Wellington in 1998, on its way to Parliament. The Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) was proposed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), of which New Zealand is a member. The MAI was intended to provide a framework for international investment based on highly liberalised national investment controls and improved investment protection, with effective dispute settlement procedures, open to non-OECD countries. The proposal provoked vehement opposition internationally. Those opposed argued the MAI favoured big business and was being imposed without adequate consultation. In the end, the initiative collapsed.”
Thanks Kiwiri for bringing those links forward.
EiE @19.1.1. Don’t like the song. Not the way to go.
On another note did anyone see, has anyone noticed David Fisher, about his relationship with Slater. Don’t have the link at hand. I wonder how many more we are going to see like this coming out of the word work.
You don’t have to like it. It is mildly distasteful. However it a direct consequence of Key’s war on the poor.
Key and DPF can’t behave like they do and then cry when these things happen.
In what world is a song about killing somebody “mildly distasteful”? It is completely disgusting and shouldn’t be defended.
It’s just a song. It won’t appeal to middle NZ sensibilities. And it’s not helpful for unpoisoning our politics. But Neoliberal policies are actually killing tens of thousands in NZ before their due time and we all accept that.
No, it isn’t mildly distasteful. It is way, way worse than that and sentiments encouraging rape and violence should not be considered justifiable by anybody professing to be left wing. I loathe John Key and fear for the future of NZ if he gets reelected. This song is more likely to get him sympathy at a time that those who thought he was great are beginning to ask questions. Really dumb.
“…sentiments encouraging rape…”
Care to point that out please?
I inwardly groan when I see a leftie express the anger in terms of violence or killing political opponents (in a country like NZ that isn’t a war zone). I don’t think it’a helpful to the left at all.
Probably not helpful at all.
But as far as I know @peace aren’t speaking for “the left” as as artists have no responsibility to do so.
Fair enough. Whoever does it, not something I support.
I’m for the means of political protest and the underlying values expressed are important.
As I see it, stuff like this just shows the depth of antipathy that exists among young people toward Key in particular and this govt in general.
None of this sentiment is ever picked up in the polls, and the political commentariat seem to have missed it, but it exists and it is building.
It’s because they either don’t want it to turn up in the polls – or they hoping they bury their heads long enough it will go away.
But just stop and talk to the young people, they are pissed off. They see what’s happening, they are not stupid. I talk to young mum’s and dads on a regular basis – they feel the future is going to be absolute hell for their kids. – I think they are right.
Funny how pollsters don’t ask that question.
I agree it shows the depth of anger. But I worry about what will replace it when the anger is expressed in the language of violence.
Not keen on bringing Key’s daughter into it either.
I’m glad to hear there are a lot of young people angry with the government and state of our society.
“I worry about what will replace it when the anger is expressed in the language of violence.”
Yeah it’s a worry alright. But it’s also entirely predictable considering the violence this govt and those they represent have inflicted on large segments of the populace.
This is a really important conversation. We’ve seen a generation of young people alienated from the political process – and that is never a stable condition.
Sooner or later something or someone will trigger that instability – and this small country may see consequences from our deepest nightmares.
It’s why the left must keep campaigning hard to get these people back voting.
Oh poor key and sophie
Key himself draws his kids into it. I’ll try and hunt it out but there’s the time Key had been bailed up about some shares – tranzrail? – and he quipped ‘ I even offered them to Max and he didn’t want them..’
Here it is
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/key-admits-sloppy-share-management-3367436
The article linked on karol’s post perhaps anker? It’s an excellent article. Shines a light on a topic, their relationship with sources, that no other journalists, most likely for a myriad of reasons, have not been able or will not to raise.
Rod Oram on Radionz on housing policies at moment, National first then Labour. Good as usual.
Says that a big change will be needed from the trend to build expensive homes as being more profitable. He talks about the building sector needing to have sort of templates to design and build cheaper homes. If we had an active government, there would be model houses designed for country-wide use, for cost and materials and practicality designed by people using their specialist knowledge for the benefit of NZs. A Buildings department would be a good idea. I think we have something of that nature that is prevented from being the needed guide by some ill-advised ideology.
EiE @ 22.1 Yep that is true. I don’t have to like it. I understand why its happening. When your suppress people and their voice it breaks through and it is not pretty as it would have been if you let them have a say in the first place.
as rare as hens’ teeth .. apology from Plunket to Gower ? must have been a very big mess ….
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10424397/Plunket-apologises-over-Gower-ambush
The state of NZ’s broadcasters: when those reporting the news are making news.
As ratshit ridiculous and plainly unprofessional as Gower can be in the visual medium Plunket comes across as the overbearing, hectoring bully in the talkback context. One for Gower here. Neither however approach the master of the universe chappie coining himself “Well Oi’ll Bee Fooked”.
I’m loving all the moralising over this song in the comments.
By the way anger young men. Hip-hop and violent.
So for the squeamish – avoid.
http://www.undertheradar.co.nz/news/8630/Listen-Peace—Kill-The-PM.utr
Indeed. See the discussion going on above, starting at #19
The scum involved in #dirtypolitics were/are only a phone call removed from sinister shit like this.
The National Security Agency is secretly providing data to nearly two dozen U.S. government agencies with a “Google-like” search engine built to share more than 850 billion records about phone calls, emails, cellphone locations, and internet chats, according to classified documents obtained by The Intercept.
The documents provide the first definitive evidence that the NSA has for years made massive amounts of surveillance data directly accessible to domestic law enforcement agencies. Planning documents for ICREACH, as the search engine is called, cite the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration as key participants.
ICREACH contains information on the private communications of foreigners and, it appears, millions of records on American citizens who have not been accused of any wrongdoing. Details about its existence are contained in the archive of materials provided to The Intercept by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
https://firstlook.org/theintercept/article/2014/08/25/icreach-nsa-cia-secret-google-crisscross-proton/
An even better one linked from there;
http://www.popehat.com/2013/12/23/burn-the-fucking-system-to-the-ground/
So the hacker explains today that when the motivation is understood, and it’s not political, it will point directly and specifically to the hacker.
maybe there are several out there with reason to do it … just as an example … from 2012 ..
http://laudafinem.com/tag/debbie-brown/
Be warned .. it has a very large and unflattering image of Slater ….
Toujours, cherchez la femme !
lol!
and this published online, dated today … lots in there I don’t personally understand, but the machinations seem deep and acidly corrosive. Have we just been been surfing on a cesspit this whole time ? Eeew.
http://laudafinem.com/category/lauda-finem-investigates/
Your warning shouldn’t be about the photo of Slater, yeshe, but about the misogyny and racism of the person who wrote the article. Pathetic stuff.
agree 100% . the whole thing is abhorrent.
That laudafinem blog has a very sleazy style. That article is very distasteful.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/10424702/Man-admits-defacing-National-Party-billboards?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
nothing in that article about him being a green member.
Has the SIS been conveniently declassifying files about government opponents again?
Nope I utilised my mad hacking skillz and got access from a source that must remain confidental
– http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2014/08/green_party_activist_guilty_of_defacing_national_billboards.html
ah, more traditional right-wing stalkerising.
Tell me, did farrar base the alleged green-connection on stolen membership records, or simply because the guy turned up to a protest?
I think he based it more on what the guy put on his own facebook page however I concede it may have been put there by a vengeful SIS in an effort to make the drop kick look bad
yes, because whenever I see someone in the court news I need to see what posts on their facebook page can be twisted for my purposes 🙄 #rightwingstalkers
protip: not everyone who says “fuck john key” is a “green party activist”.
Hey PR, was it you who – a week or so before #hagerbook – was here bragging that the dirty tricks crew have one story/smear to release every day until the election?
How’s that working out?
lol
i just sat in ak library and speed-read ‘dirty politics’..
.whoar..!
..it’s even worse than you think it’s gonna be..
..and farrar giving himself groin-stretch trying to step away from the mess..?
..and furiously washing his hands at the same time..?
..utter bullshit..!
..his little head is bobbing away in there..alongside slater/lusk/ede/hooton/bhatnagar..
..david ‘dirty politics’ farrar..
EiE
I guess you support the “Roast Busters” then?
You dickhead.
Wow
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/20147237/failed-national-candidate-wants-rogue-elements-kicked-out
This shit has got to end. So many questions like that from Brent Robinson going unanswered. He quite categorically states that Mitchell told him he had hired Lusk and Slater to do the dirty work. Now Mitchell is denying ever having spoken to Robinson about it.
This guy Mitchell is an ex mercenary, the worst type of hired thug you can get. What do the good people of Rodney think? More needs to be made of this story including some effing journos door-stepping Mitchell.
xox
Present at Oxfam Climate Change Debate in Wellington. VUW. Rutherford house. Greens present,Labour present, NZFirst present. National absent. The worlds under serious threat. National , no show. Incredible.
Hack Attack! Anonymous strikes at Israeli govt over Gaza
http://rt.com/news/182520-anonymous-attack-israeli-government/
David Farrar cries that he can’t understand why the hate shown towards people like him in this election.
John Key cries the same.
They are as ignorant as the policies and attitudes of theirs which cause the hate. So fucking ignorant.
Funny eh? Seems that the narrow constraints of polite political discourse conducted by a handful of utterly conflicted and well-heeled insiders has somehow completely misread the depth of the disgust and contempt this govt inspires in many, many people.
It’s been there for a while, I think people feel they can express it now.
Yep.
John Key failed to distance himself from Slater even when he was on the West Coast and face to face with the mother of the young man over whose death Slater danced for joy and talked with Key about. Key had nothing to say to her and Key stood with Slater. Says it all.
Key is nothing but scum.
Slater can go to hell.
I don’t believe in hell, but even if I were as amoral and insecure as slater, I’d still want to hedge my bets a bit more than he has 🙂
Interesting that Labour’s David Parker (at the debate in Queenstown tonight) argues against ‘low value’ immigration on the basis the modern economy has a diminishing need for labour, yet he is intent on pushing the age of Super out, increasing the labour pool.
That just goes to show that he’s an unreconstructed Rogernome at heart. If the left lose this time, I think he will be at least as responsible as any individual.
Ergo compulsory Kiwisaver will allow people to retire at 65 still ,!
Weka. Use caliber to manage your books. It’s pretty much an iTunes equivalent for ebooks. Apparently there are addins for it that you can find on the interweb that automatically perform various tasks. Depending on the task u want to automate, just Google for it.
do you mean Calibre? I already use that, but it can’t read the Kindle version of Dirty Politics. Once imported into Calibre, it will prompt Kindle to open and show the book there instead. Like I said, I tried various ripping options and none of them could get past the DRM, so I’m curious how you think it can be ripped easily within a few minutes.
Edit: ah ok, I see what you mean. There is a Kindleunpackit addon that creates a new file that can be read in Calibre and presumably ripped to PDF etc. cheers.
Weka. Don’t over complicate things. Just Google caliber drm.